


hypothermia

by demolitionwhore



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan, aot
Genre: Alternate Universe - Boxing, Annie is emotionally repressed, Emotional Healing, F/F, F/M, Frequent updates, M/M, Slow Burn, Slow Romance, Trauma, boxing au, mikannie - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-24
Updated: 2021-03-10
Packaged: 2021-03-15 07:07:28
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 26,824
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29680248
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/demolitionwhore/pseuds/demolitionwhore
Summary: Annie’s ice cold eyes narrowed at her opponent. There was no warm sky blue, only a freezing critical stare.
Relationships: Armin Arlert/Eren Yeager, Jean Kirstein/Eren Yeager, Marco Bott/Jean Kirstein, Mikasa Ackerman/Annie Leonhart, Reiner Braun/Bertolt Hoover
Comments: 20
Kudos: 96





	1. coping was never easy

Annie was positively a mess. she pushed her blonde bangs away from her face as she stared at the calculus assignment plaguing her. Did they go over this in class? She had zoned out from the whole thing. 

She felt like everyone in the quiet library was staring, laughing at her. Certainly that didn't make sense, Connie often brags about how he's cheated on every test since freshman year and all he got were laughs. Why did Annie feel like this then? 

Regardless, Annies heart started beating faster from underneath her faded soccer hoodie, the jeans she usually wore because of their comfort started to feel tight and rash against her skin. 

Annie was sweating, breathing faster as she forced her eyes on her homework. The numbers swirled on the page and she gulped. She couldn't have anyone seeing her like this.  
Not now, not ever.

Her eyes quickly darted around the room before she gathered her things. Shaking hands let a few folders slip onto the carpeted floor.

The blonde cursed under her breath and packed up her things in a rush, hurrying outside of the library. She didn't know where to go or what to do. 

Disappearing would be nice. 

Icy blue eyes squint as she pushes the hallway door into the outside. It's sunny and warm, not in an uncomfortable way. Even though she was dressed in a hoodie and jeans, the sun seemed to bring Annie back into her own body.

She trudged her way down the concrete paths of campus until her heavy steps led to the soccer field. 

Annie wasn't surprised that she ended up by the bleacher's short green grass, the field always brought a sense of calm around her. She sighed as she made her way up the metal steps, feeling a thin sheen of sweat collecting on her forehead. 

Saying Annie missed soccer was an understatement, soccer was her whole world. Preparing for game after game kept her going, but things had been hard. 

She started showing up to practice less and less, her grades were slipping, and Annie didn't know if she could show her face to coach Hange ever again. 

Hange believed in her. Encouraged her. Annies sudden quit must've broken her heart. Icy blue eyes close and tinged lips let out a sigh. Her chest rose and fell as she laid face up on the highest bleacher. 

The sky was swallowing blue, consuming all of Annie's thoughts until her brain reflected the swirling azur above her. A needle of guilt poked at her heart, the world was so vast and all she could think about were her problems.

why is she such a bitch i thought she was cool why weren't you at practice Hange is worried about you why aren't you doing your assignments i miss the old you why are you crying why are you crying why you crying stop being weak youre better than this youre better than this

Annie’s eyes shut tighter and she forced a deep breath. Her arms were now crossed over her body as a means for protection against the world around her. She's falling and falling, her grip on herself tightens and tightens. Annie stays. She stays this way until the next bell reverberates through her skull. Blonde hair sweeps off her face as Annie tries to compose herself, scurrying off to her next class. 

-

Mikasa tentatively peered at Annie across from the cafeteria. She wasn’t eating, again. The blonde girl had been acting strange recently and Mikasa had noticed; they weren’t strangers after all. More like competitive teammates. Maybe friendly enemies? Mikasa couldn’t really tell if they were close enough to be more than acquaintances. As familiar as you get with someone you only know because you’re in the same grade. The raven haired girl sighed as she zoned off somewhere towards Annie’s direction, thinking of nothing and everything at the same time.

“Mikasa? Earth to Mrs. Scissorhands?” Armins bright blue eyes greeted Mikasa as she was pulled out of her own head.

“You okay?” Armin’s voice was quiet enough so no one else would hear, but just as filled with care like always. 

The corners of Mikasa’s mouth tinged up in a lame attempt to brush off whatever she was thinking. She knew deep down there was no way bullshitting Armin would prove successful, but nothing ever truly stopped her from trying.

“Yeah, yeah i was just.. a little lost” She chuckled, absentmindedly scratching at the scar on her face.

This didn’t go unnoticed with Armin, but he knew better than to push Mikasa if she doesn't come to him first. He gave her a reassuring squeeze and went back to the mario kart game with connie on his nintendo switch. They were both hunched over intensely focused on the small screen. Mikasa felt so grateful for a friend that respected her emotional boundaries.

The remainder of lunch went as usual, Mikasa trying to seem attentive during Sasha's big expressive speeches and smiling at jokes Eren made that had everyone else cracking up. She let her expressions falter once in a while, but not to anyone’s notice. The quiet girl tried to keep her eyes on her food, but couldn’t help stealing glances at Annie. This worry for her academic rival wasn’t new, if there was anything the two understood about each other; it was their ambition to be the best. They work hard to surpass each other, but the little rivalry has died slowly in the past few months.

Annie’s eyes no longer gleamed with pride and cynical calculation, she looked distant, and dare Mikasa even think sad. She wanted to reach out, although she couldn’t pin why. She craved Annie’s attention, and had always thought of Annie as an unmovable rock in the midst of a flowing river. A constant in the everchanging stream. 

Maybe This was the way rivals were supposed to feel, Mikasa pondered. Although she was certain a feeling of disdain should accompany the rest of the emotions. The raven haired girl had no dislike for Annie, in fact, she wanted to be closer. Her heart races everytime Annie talks in class, or when she spots a rare laugh from across the lunchroom. For a reason she did not know, Mikasa thought of Annie often. She liked her secret thoughts to stay just that.

-

The rest of the day blurred on for Annie. Classes. Homework. Dumbass jokes from Reiners loud mouth. A heavy blanket of boredom and tiredness settled over Annie. Was every day always the same or has she never truly paid attention? She longed for something new to present itself, another challenge to tackle.

Life was simply becoming boring. Annie’s usual indifferent and slightly irritated demeanor was growing uneasy. Usually, the blonde hated showing emotion of any kind, but she couldn’t help but snap at the people who whispered about her. 

Annie boredly watched the clock, ignoring the chatter of her classmates around her. For a slight second, the hushed conversation between Historia and Sasha that the blonde just barely heard intrigued her. Something about Mikasa, then Annie reminded herself there’s no real reason to care about that kind of stuff. Mikasa was just another bullet to a long list of annoyances in Annie's head. If Annie were to write out this aforementioned list, Mikasa’s name would be highlighted in bright red. 

Leonhardt wasn’t stupid, she knew Mikasa was smart, empathetic, protective, and viciously ambitious. People like her were capable of seeing through Annie’s walls, analyzing her, caring about her, and eventually, hurting her. There’s no way in hell Mikasa would be getting anywhere near her. 

Although she is quite easy on the eyes.. 

A sharp noise cut through Annie’s thoughts. Finally, she thought, this day can be fucking over. Blonde hair and white hoodie made their way down the halls as the boxer walked quickly towards the exit. She didn’t stop to wait for any friends to walk home with like her other classmates, Reiner and Bertholdt usually carpooled home together anyways. 

Annie quite enjoyed walking home alone, overgrown trees hung around the backroad she usually took, so the heat was never a problem. Finally out of that hellhole, Annie took a deep breathe in and felt her lungs burn as she slowly exhaled. This past month has been admittedly hard, she was thankful for having an escape from her static-filled head. 

the first few fall leaves crunched under her converse, and the sun shone through the thick blanket of leaves surrounding the road. This was good, a part of her daily routine she didn’t dread. Like a peace offering from the world so she won’t lose her shit. It sufficed for now. 

Annie grumbled when she got home and immediately walked up the narrow stairs to her room, grabbing a poptart from the pantry first. Homework was fine, she was antsy to get to the gym before her father got home from work, the small talk during dinner was already excruciating enough.

Once he told Annie it hurt his feelings that she went to the gym rather than waiting to see him, but she thought he was being painfully overdramatic about his daughter just going to work out. Annie rolled her eyes while filling out a problem. And so what? What if she was ignoring him? No talking until dinner was better than having nothing to talk about for the rest of the evening. 

Although her math teacher, Levi Ackerman, wouldn’t approve, Annie has found typing the overly difficult equations she was assigned everyday into her phone fared a lot better for time management. She usually planned to cram before any test, or really just cheat during the test. it’s not like anyone made it that hard. 

Done. Finally. The calculus bullshit gave Annie a headache, but she scrambled to her closet and changed into gym clothes; a grey tank top and black athletic shorts with her hoodie slung over her shoulder, Ymir always teases her for looking hot in that outfit. Looking in the mirror, Annie couldn’t necessarily disagree.

She grabbed her duffel bag and raced down the stairs, gym shoes already on. This might be the time of the day she thoroughly enjoyed. The incessant badgering from Jean, Sasha, and Ymir (occasionally Historia) wasn’t always too bad. They might even be considered friends, Annie mulled over the idea. Friends go to movies, hang out, maybe play video games together. 

Fuck, They’re my friends.

-

The gym was bright, annoyingly so. Annie feigned back in annoyance as she walked in, used to the dim golden hour subsiding outside. She enjoyed simply walking to the gym. Sasha perked up and ran to Annie.

God, does she shoot back energy drinks or something? 

“Finally!” Sasha overexaggerated with an eye roll and dramatic sigh.  
“I’ve been waiting forever for you to show up!”

Annie raised an eyebrow and quirked the sides of her lips up, only enough so that Sasha would notice. Sasha returned the sentiment with a big toothy smile and slung her arm around the shorter girl's shoulder. Walking towards the locker rooms to get ready for sparring. Sasha was undeniably nice to the blonde who tended to beat her 2 out of 3 fights. 

Jeans head popped up from the gym bench, his eyebrows wrinkled from struggling with his hand wraps again. God, was he a slow learner or something?

“Hey, Guys! No rush, Ymir’s running late so.. practice will drag on today… as usual” He mumbled. 

The corner of Annie’s mouth quirked as the taller girl stopped beside her.

“What was that? I didn’t quite hear that last part, Jeanboy!” Sasha cackled at her own comment, even wiping a few fake-maybe-real tears for extra effect. Sasha’s arm around the blonde continued forward. Usually, this kind of physical contact would get someone beat up, but Annie and Sasha understood each other, after years of boxing together, Sasha had earned Annie’s trust as a friend. Not something many could say. 

The short blonde was looking forward to today’s practice, and allowed herself a small smile.

Once Ymir had finally arrived, arm around Historia, she got ready quickly, via Annie’s death glare. 

-

Jean slammed onto the mat, Annie smirked, breathing heavily as Sasha counted to three.

God, could she count any slower?

“Damnit, Leonhardt, you win again” Jean huffed and shook his head, at least he’d never been the type to be a sore loser. 

The blonde smirked again, Jean was only the captain of their team because Annie didn’t care enough to actually manage everything. Although he does come to the shorter girl sometimes to go over the team's strengths and weaknesses.

Annie swung herself off the mat and took off her boxing gloves, flexing her now-sweaty hands, relishing in the cold air released from the stuffy material. Sasha squealed next to her and scurried onto the mat, opposite to Ymir. Annie tried to hide her bemusement, but both of them were improving, the fights have been faring quite interesting. 

Sasha was jumping around, cracking her neck, shaking the nervousness off of her arms and hands, all Ymir did was take her stance and wink at Sasha. In turn she put on a mean glare as the fight settled to begin.

Jean took his place standing next to Annie with his arms crossed, watching them intently. These spars seemed to get quite serious whenever Ymir was willing to properly participate. 

“You got this baby! And go Sasha!” Historia’s voice squealed from the bench. Ymir rolled her eyes but still smiled at her girlfriend. 

“Babe, don’t root for me And my opponent”

Historia narrowed her eyes and scrunched her mouth at her Ymir” Everyone knew she was too nice to choose between her partner and her best friend. 

“Alright, Come on! You better not go easy on eachother now!” Jean grinned as he saw both girls swallow nervously at it.

Sasha and Ymir circled each other apprehensively, waiting for an opening in the others defense, Ymir then quickly punched Sasha's face, Her long arms giving leeway to strike safely. The shorter girl's eyes narrowed as she tightened up the defense around her body, letting the forearms take the blow.

Annie knew how these turned out, Ymir was undeniably good; being fast and adaptable made a good boxer, what the tall freckled girl didn’t have in brute strength she made up for in quick dodges and strategic strikes. 

Sasha whined overdramatically when Ymir backed up and assumed her original guard.

“Come on, Ymir! You know you’re gonna give me bruises!” She giggled before striking Ymir’s stomach with her knee, made all too easy by their height difference. The tall freckled girl backed off, grasping for some balance. Instead of balance, she found herself backed into a corner by a short (but terrifying) Sasha. 

Icy blue eyes narrow as she’s watching them. Sasha is strong and steady with how she fights, but will burn out quickly if she doesn’t get Ymir down quick. Annie could tell the freckled also knew this, considering she’s letting Sasha use her as a punching bag for kicks. 

A slender leg hooked under Sasha’s as Ymir made her fall, the taller opponent then immediately assumed a sitting stance on top of Sasha, trying to keep her down for more than three agonizing seconds.

One!

Sasha grabs Ymir’s left arm and yanks them off of her.

Two!

An Auburn ponytail swings violently as she stands up as fast as her opponent. 

Three!

Sasha doesn’t let her guard down as she maneuvers behind Ymir, Letting her leg slice quickly underneath their shins. 

Ymir falls on the floor face first with a thud, and Sasha straddles on top of Ymir, pinning down her shoulder, face to the matt. 

When did she learn all this?

Annie smirks as she sees Historia bite her lip in concern. 

The three counts echo throughout the gym, and Annie remains still with her eyebrows raised in shock. It wasn’t like she didn’t know Sasha was talented, she just didn’t know she was capable of a move even Jean had trouble with. To Knock an opponent off their feet while simultaneously swerving behind them was easier said than done. 

“Okay, You can get off of me now, dumbass” Ymir’s voice was muffled due to their face being pinned down by a very happy Sasha. 

Sasha scrambled off of Ymir and wiped the stray hairs out of her face, making Annie cringe at her sweat. 

“YES!! SUCK IT YMIR HAHA!” She swiveled around to Historia from atop the mat.  
“And YOU owe me twenty dollars!” 

Historia covered her face as the barely-recovered Ymir struggled past the mats barriers and onto the floor, marching toward Historia. They stopped right in front of their now-giggling girlfriend and tried to conceal a smile as they leaned down.

“I can’t believe you bet on this game! With my opponent!” Ymir tried to sound mad but genuinely couldn't contain a giggle that slipped out. The blonde took her face out of her hands and looked up, big blue doe-eyes and a sweet smile.

“At least I bet on you!” She smiled and ran off toward the locker rooms as Ymir playfully chased after her, grabby hands like a child after their shorter girlfriend. 

“Don’t take too long in there, Loser!” Sasha called after them as she ripped the velcro of her boxing gloves off. 

“Oh don’t worry!” Ymir called back. “We won’t” They finished with a wink and went into the locker room, getting a decent fake gag from everyone around. 

They couldn’t keep a secret about their relationship if they tried. 

Sasha made a little huffing sound as she got down from the platform, although she was strong, she couldn’t be more than an inch or two taller than Annie, still way shorter than Jean, and especially the tallest, Ymir.

Jean walked over to the cheery auburn haired girl and gave a hearty slap on her back. She cringed a little at the pain and smiled a little more tentatively up at him.

“Not bad, Braus! You’re really improving, We should celebrate by getting dinner sometime”

Sasha visibly brushed and looked around frantically for a solution. Annie watched her in amusement, letting a little smile slip through while Jean slung an arm around his strictly-teammate. A couple seconds of silence passed and Annie cringed looking at the both of them.

I wonder what the hell she’d do without me.

“Sasha.”

“Hm?”

“He means the whole team”

Sasha’s eyes widened, mouth slightly agape in the little shape of an O. She smiled sheepishly and grabbed Jeans arm around her shoulder playfully.

“Of course Jeanboy! I’ll be there as long as you pay for the food!” 

Annie looked away, pretending to be not interested. 

Maybe It’s okay if they're my friends. 

He sighed and gave Sasha a good oogie with his knuckle on Sasha’s scalp, she winced then smiled, Sighing as she heaved Jean's arm over her head and back onto his side. Tan hands wrapped around pale wrists as Sasha dragged Annie to the locker room, Annie usually would protest, or break the recipients arm, but all she did was roll her eyes. 

ONce they were all showered and changed, Annie taking little to no time to get ready and Sasha had banged on the stall Historia and Ymir were sharing for….efficiency…. Auburn hair was put into a tight ponytail as Sasha pulled her icy-eyed friend to the side for a moment. 

She laughed nervously, looking to the side. “Annie I.. I know i don’t usually ask this but-“

Come on, use your words.

“You can say the night, Sasha, don’t worry about it'' Annie ushered out the most nonchalant tone she could manage, not wanting Sasha to get any ideas. Her normal apathy did not even escape semi-friends. But she let her lips quirk up for just a moment to reassure her sensitive friend. 

Sasha’s eyes shone with gratitude, She grabbed Annie into a quick but tight hug- just the way she tolerated affection. Once they were out of the hug, Annie walked towards the locker room exit, gesturing for Sasha to follow behind. 

“We’re leaving, catch up on critiques after dinner” Annie said before shoving the door open with her right shoulder, not really caring for a response from all-mighty-gym-leader-Jean. He rolled his eyes and waved them off. 

“Hope you have a great night, assholes!” He called after them.

As if. The blonde snickered. 

-

It was the middle of the night. Annie shoved Sasha’s arm off of her, Was she always such a starfish sleeper? Annie needed her space to sleep, or else it was useless. Body heat from other people made her feel hot and trapped, yet the lack of heat warranted many blankets that party B (pretty much only Sasha) constantly complained about. 

Annie finally sat up, nostrils flared from slight annoyance. She wasn’t exactly mad at her friend, but like, was it that hard to just stay on her side of the bed?

She grumbled and haphazardly climbed over Sasha and onto the floor. 

Oh my god, does the mouth produce enough saliva to drool that much?

Once Annie was down on the floor. She pulled some blankets out from under her bed, using a teddy bear as a makeshift pillow. The ceiling was cracked, shoddy paint on the verge of flaking off had always felt familiar to the blonde. She let her mind wander, for once not thinking of her schedule, or the people around her.

Mikasa. Fuck.

Annie knew Ackerman was staring today at lunch, she wasn’t stupid. The boxer had sat away from everyone else, the loudness of the cafeteria was all too overwhelming although she’d never admit that. Zoning off had been one of the blondes favorite pastimes recently, but she still never failed to be aware of her surroundings. 

They had locked eyes once, The blonde laughed a little at how quickly Mikasa looked away, had she been worried, or did she like what she saw? Unfamiliar people always confused Annie, and Ackerman was no exception. Why did people stare just to look? If anything it aggravated the boxer more.

Annie shifted onto her side. 

Why was she still even thinking of MIkasa? It felt all too pointless but she couldn’t get her mind off of the damn soccer player. I wonder what she smells like. Annie mentally scolded herself for thinking such things. 

This is pointless, get some fucking sleep.

She closed her eyes and steadied her breathing. Sleep took her immediately, as it always does.


	2. curiosity

Mikasa stretched her arms. 

Fuck, what day is it.. Was the recital today?

She quickly sat up to look at the cat-themed calendar the Carla had got her, No, the game was in a week. Her raven hair shook slightly as she scoffed at herself. 

Get a grip. 

She got up and banged on Eren’s door, he slept like the dead, never even bothering to set his alarm since Mikasa was always there. Always. He groaned in response to let his younger sister know he was up. Mikasa decided that was enough and got dressed quickly, not really bothering to look in the mirror much. Since the weather was getting cooler, a Faded dark blue hoodie and black skinny jeans seemed fine. Of course paired with her usual scarf. 

Carla usually slept in from waking the night shift, so she poured Eren a bowl of cereal. Food in the morning tended to make her nauseous. She raised her eyebrow at a very energetic Eren barreling down the stairs.

“Hey ‘Kasa! God thank you for making me breakfast” HE sat down and started stuffing the frosted wheats into his face.  
“How did you sleep? God i slept great. Today’s gonna be a great day, don’t you think?”  
He looked to Mikasa with his cheeks stuffed like a chipmunk, eyes shining with expectancy.

“Yeah, Eren, great day today” She said skeptically. The taller girl knew her brother tended to be energetic, but so much enthusiasm so early made him seem like a bomb about to go off. 

He finished shoving the cereal into his mouth and rushed to put the bowl in the sink, slinging his backpack over his shoulder at the same time. Eren stopped in front of his sister, looking up at her expectantly. She just stared back with her eyebrows furrowed. Mikasa hasn’t always been the best at understanding social cues. 

“Um.. Move? Please?” He squeaked, She got out of the way so he could get to his shoes, and they set off. The walk to Jean’s place was brisk, a little chilly, but Mikasa was sure her brother was pretty warm since he was practically jogging to keep up with her long strides. 

Jean had driven the Jaeger siblings to and from school for a couple months now. He was just barely old enough to have gotten his license, so he took the opportunity to be his friend groups personal chauffeur. Mikasa let herself in and took in his huge living room, it felt like so much to her, how could anyone ever relax in here?

Jean appeared at the top of the stairs, He waved an easy-going hello to both of them. Well, he tried to with the piece of toast hanging from his mouth. His strawberry brown hair bounced as he rushed into the kitchen to get some snacks for Sasha. Although he acted like a cocky asshole, Mikasa thought he was really selfless for the way he took care of everybody. 

A few moments later, Marco also walked down the stairs. Mikasa and Eren exchanged that what-the-fuck sibling look they often shared. Marco noticed the both of them and blushed furiously underneath his freckles. He waved a little hello and scurried off to follow Jean. 

Mikasa looked over to smirk at Erena at the dramatic reveal, only to find her brother completely devastated. He looked like he was on the verge of tears, the shorter boy mumbled some excuse and rushed to the bathroom. Mikasa wanted to follow after him, but she stayed, figuring her brother hated to make a big deal of vulnerable emotions. She couldn’t blame him, being the exact same way. 

Jean came in and handed Mikasa a bottle of water with a warm smile, and a pack of gummies for Eren, He tilted his head at his former-crush. She gestured toward the bathroom, he shrugged and grabbed his backpack. Marco came up and hugged him from behind, seeming a lot less shy about his boyfriend than before. Mikasa quirked her lip at him, she was never one to fake a smile. 

Marco rested his head on Jean's shoulder and closed his eyes, silently swaying his boyfriend, who was distracted on his phone. Mikasa’s heart panged, she hated when it did that. It reminded her of her parents, to be honest. She wondered how long their ghost would plague Mikasa’s life, specifically the memory of love. Her clouded grey eyes snapped out of their daze when Jean yelled after Eren.

“Dumbass! Come on, you snooze, you lose , you Know!” There was some scuffling and a thud followed by some curses. Jean snorted rolled his eyes out of fondness, pushing open the door with one hand, Marco’s hand in the other. 

Did they seriously always have to be touching?

Eren scuffled back and gave Mikasa a weak smile before walking outside to the car. The annoyingly expensive one, although the tall girl supposed all 4 cars in the driveway were annoyingly expensive. 

The backseat always felt cramped to Mikasa, her legs were the longest there, second to Marco, who conveniently sat in front of her today in the passenger seat. But she figured the boyfriends would probably shrivel up and die if they were apart for five seconds. Jean started his car and started to back out. 

“Jeaan come on, we have to wait for Armin!” Eren complained from the backseat, seemingly having gained his composure back. Jean sighed and stopped backing out. He turned around to face Eren which made him blush ever-so-slighty. Mikasa hoped they weren’t due for another fight.

“You know the rules, Jaeger! IF you don’t make it on time you’re not getting taken. There are people depending on me!” Eren rolled his eyes and sighed, mumbling something about horse shit and slouching in the backseat. 

Once they were making way out of the neighborhood, a head full of Blonde air jumped out from the corner in front of them, just barely missing the car. Jean cursed and stopped to let Armin in. 

“YES NO WAY THANK YOU JEAN!” He cheerfully shouted as he clambered into the backseat, making the siblings scoot down for his presence. Armin and Mikasa now on both sides of Eren. They started chatting excitedly amidst themselves for a moment, before Eren slumped onto Armins' sides, letting the blonde boy's arms wrap around him. Mikasa noticed how Armin was furiously red underneath his bangs. 

Pretty much everyone knew the poor blue-eyed boy had been harboring a crush on Eren for years, the only person that didn’t notice just happened to be the boy he was pining for. 

Mikasa slumped against the car door letting out a sigh and brought her knees up to her chest as she popped an earbud into her ear, letting Washing Machine Heart play on repeat until they arrived. 

The only thing that stood out on the normal morning was her. Mikasa had seen the blonde bun and grey white hoodie from a mile away as they approached the school. She was walking with a very excited Sasha Braus, which Mikasa thought was strange. They didn’t really seem the type to be friends.The raven haired girl took every chance she got to steal glances at Annie without making it seem too obvious. She sighed slightly as she looked back at the blonde again as they passed by, only to meet those same Icy eyes and a bored expression. 

Fuck, she noticed. 

-

Does Ackerman think I’m stupid?

Annie sighed and plopped down in her desk, of course always in the back. People started to fill in the classroom and the blonde rolled her eyes at the incessant chattering of her classmates. Their voices seemed too loud but too quiet at the same time, making Annie cringe at their presence. Bertholdt sat next to her quietly, giving a little “hello, Annie” before turning to hunch ove and scribble on his desk. Annie peeked up from under her arms and nodded at her giant childhood friend. He seemed to be only one that wasn’t bothered by Annies offput demeanor. That and Reiner. 

Even though everything felt like it was falling apart, she knows she’ll always have them. 

Stop being sappy, Leonhart. 

Reiner burst through the room at last minute. Annie had now moved to a slouched upright position against the chair. She looked over and narrowed her eyes judgementally towards Reiner. He quirked his gaze to her, returning an equally menacing stare. Annie rolled her eyes and huffed. 

“In a bad mood, Leonhart?” He sat down and threw his bookbag onto the floor carelessly, Annie really didn’t know what the other girls found so attractive in him. All she sees in him is a muscly dumbass, sometimes childhood friend if Annie was feeling nice. 

“You wish, Reiner” She scoffed back quietly. 

He looked over, their eyes met. Reiner’s eyebrows quirked ever so slightly, asking if she was feeling okay. Annie sent back a dismissive nod and put her head back down. 

She supposed years of friendship resulted in nonverbal communication, and Reiner was smart enough to not ask about Annie’s feelings explicitly. So that was confirmation at least one logical thought has passed through his mind. 

maybe he should make a habit of it. 

Annie snorted at her own thought, and cracked a grin with her head stuffed in her hoodie. The only people that could stand her are dumbasses, so what does that make her?

Jesus, I needed to find some new friends. 

The class started, Ms. Ral blabbing on about the importance of English class and how the 1st period wasn't doing well. Obviously they’re not, Ral just likes to expect things from highschoolers— her mistake.

The day sloshed on until study hall. Annie’s favorite time of day. She decided to skip the library and burst onto the outdoor walkways, heading straight for the bleachers. She walked quickly to the top and layed down on the highest bleacher, thankful autumn was coming around for the lack of heat. It was.. Almost beautiful outside. Though Annie would never admit it.

She heard a rustling below her, someone else had made themself present in Annie’s alone time. There’s nothing she hated more. The blonde opened her eyes slightly and tilted her head sideways, just enough to see who on earth could be at the bleachers during lunch. 

Dark stormy eyes met Ice-cold blue, and Annie’s breath hitched. She hated to show any sign of likeness, but even objectively, Mikasa was beautiful. But only objectively, the blonde tried to convince herself. 

Mikasa’s eyes locked and did not move, her head tilted slightly up and body twisted to meet Annie's presence above her. Annie made sure to placate her face into the usual bored expression. She decided there was no point in being friendly to the girl beneath her, Annie usually wasn’t the most welcoming anyways. 

Annie moved her head back to face the sky, still laying down. 

“Busy, Ackerman?” She said, her eyes closed against the flash of sun landing on her face. Adding just the right bit of venom to her voice. Annie could hear Mikasa turn back around, no longer feeling the stare the red-clad girl boring into her. 

“You don’t own these bleachers, you know,” Mikasa spat back. 

Okay, a bit stronger than Annie was expecting. But if the blonde had learned anything in her life, it was to fight fire with fire. 

“Why were you with Sasha Braus this morning?”

Annie quirked her lips slightly, not bothering to look at Ackerman. There was a sense of genuine curosity in Mikasa’s voice. Most people would think it’s weird to ask personal questions right off the bat, but Annie was just as socially advanced as s scared dog. 

“None of your damn business, Ackerman” Annie lazily opened her eyes ad tilted her head to face Mikasa. The raven haired girl twisted again and narrowed her eyes at the blonde. 

“Fine then, I just never thought Braus would want to be friends with someone like you” Mikasa insulted, Annie wasn’t offended in the slightest. She found her attitude amusing, no one usually took to the challenge of stepping up to Leonhart. 

Annie now sat up, getting square with Mikasa despite their inclination difference due to the bleachers. 

“You don’t know people as ell as you think you do. And you sure as hell don’t know me” Annie spit and collected her bag up off of the bleacher floor. Slinging the silver back over her shoulder as she made her way down the bleachers. Mikasa had come there for a reason, she knew it. She had a feeling it was to see her. 

Annie huffed, people were so hard to understand. Only if everyone thought as logically as her.

-

Mikasa watched Annie’s bun bounce as she walked off, the venom of her words not causing a damn thing. Annie seemed so complex yet so simple. Like a puzzle you should easily grasp yet can’t wrap your mind around. Mikasa’s brain buzzed.

Was she defensive as a means of self-preservation? In reality does she just dislike me?

Her jet black hair moved along with her as she shook her head. That can’t be it. Annie Leonhart acts offput and indifferent towards everyone, Mikasa wasn’t any different. Lunch was coming up, and she was desperate to see more of Annie.

It had to be a simple fascination, just a general interest to know people, perhaps slightly stronger when it came to Leonhart. Except Mikasa had never had an interest in getting to know anybody she didn’t know before, and Ackerman knew what things like this lead to.

It seems vulnerability doesn’t come so easy to her as it does to others. 

She huffed, walking towards the school building as the bell rang through her ears. 

-

Was it already ffriday? Thank god, Annie thought to herself. 

She impatiantly tapped her foot, watching the clock ticking almost patronizingly. She was eager to get home and pass out on her bed. The weekends mostly consisted of sleeping, practising, and all nighters playing games. Annie would never admit it, but she was content when people came over, even just to pay her company. 

Thr bell rang, and the hallwaysb bustled to life, an anxious excitement spreading through the crowd, signaling the start of the three day weekend. Annie hurridly made her way out of the parking lot and onto the sidewalk. Upon her rushing, she saw Mikasa Ackermna get into Jean Kirshteins car. Could they….? Annie shook the notion out of her head and kept walking. She was completely out of tune from the normal buzz, but Jean was considered one of her semi-friends. He tended to blabber on about his personal life at hangouts.

Why do I even care? It’s not like it’s any of my business who Ackerman’s with. 

Maybe Mikasa’s meddling in Annie’s personal life rubbed off on her, because Leonhart rarely gave other people much thought.  
Lost in thought, she picked up her pace, eager to get away from that hellhole as soon as possible. 

A voice called from behind Annie, high pitched and sweet. Unmistakably Historia Reiss and Ymir fritz. Leonhart liked to keep her boxing and personal life separate, but it didn’t help when all but one of the members of her team attended the same school. 

Ymir’s long legs strode easy to catch up with Annie, she held her girlfriends hand in tow; whom had just barely managed to keep with without tripping. Ymir grinned down at Annie— Literally— It had always annoyed the blonde that Fritz had a good 8 inches on her. Ymir teases her about how she’s like a dwarf star— small, but ready to explode at any moment. Annie does not enjoy being compared to anything with the name “dwarf” attached to it.

“What do you want, Fritz” Annie kept walking, eyes ahead. She made sure her expression was bored as can be. 

Ymir chuckled. “Ooh Leonhart, something on your mind?” 

The three girls had now entered Annie’s favorite street, with the trees overhangning and fallen berries littered on the road. Historia held onto ymi’s hand happily as she danced along with her girlfriend and an over-opinionated blonde.

Annie scoffed, looking at Ymir with an annoyed expression. 

“Following me for a reason, creeps?” Annie joked. 

Ymir mimicked a fake shock and gasped over dramatically. Historia giggled behind her and playfully punched her partner’s arms. Annie looked up at her and quriked her eyebrow unamusedly, still expecting an answer. Ymir quinted her eyes back and took a breath. 

“Jean’s having a little sleepover with the group, you count as extended friends.” 

Annie scoffed. “Well I'm glad I matter so much to our team” A sarcastic tone sticking to her words. 

Ymir rolled their eyes in response. “What I’m saying is, Sasha wants you there, said something about getting you out of the house more.”

Annie mumbled something about that sounding dumb. 

“Wanna come? There’ll be food and we’ll play games and watch movies and stuff. It’ll be fun” 

To Annie, that certainly did not sound like fun. Social atmospheres certainly were not energizing for Annie like they were for Jean or Sasha. Plus, what if it was embarrassing. for Jean to have her there? She certainly wasn’t in the mood for humiliating herself more. 

Annie stopped, notioning for the other two to stop beside her.

“Will it be quiet at night?”

“Um.. I guess?”

“Does he have decent food”

“Of course he does”

“Will Mikasa Ackerman be there?”

“.... Probably?”

Annie looked up at Ymir after her question firing, managing a smirk. 

“Okay, I’m in” 

She trudged off towards Jean’s house, changing course. She knew the two were probably wondering about the question curious about Mikasa, but that wasn’t her problem. They caught up with her, not saying a word about the obvious question. 

Why the hell would Annie Leonhart ask about Mikasa Ackerman?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am projecting onto Annie so much it’s not even funny lol


	3. sleepover, boxing.. fightclub?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tw for snakes during the movie scene!

Annie walked in, school backpack stilll slung over her shoulders. Admittedly, she was a bit annoyed that she wasn’t able to go to the gym, but it was better than the awkward exchanges with her father. 

Jean’s house was huge, I mean, she’s had her fair share of rich friends since Reiner and Bertholdt were pretty well off, but this was overwhelming. As soon as you walk in you are greeted by stairs that lead to the second floor, and on either side of the staircase was the kitchen and huge living room.

Annie thought her whole gym could fit into this place with ease. 

Glancing around, Jean and Marco were making something in the kitchen, feeding each other bites of what smelled like chocolate brownies. Eren seemed to be watching them through side-eyed glances, clearly not paying attention to whatever Armin was saying. Ymir and Historia were giggling and playing mario kart on the couch, via Armin’s switch. 

Annie walked over and huffed onto the dining room table, that was in front of the kitchen. She tapped her foot annoyedly at Jean who finally noticed her from his laughing fit incited by Marco. 

How was everybody so goddamn happy all the time? 

“Annie, Hey! When did you get here?” He smiled a bit from the kitchen, clearly trying not to laugh from Marco’s joke. 

“Few minutes ago” Annie said dissmissively, she wanted to ask if Sasha will show up soon, she felt exposed all alone. After all, wasn’t this supposed to be a friend thing? Sasha was the closest to a friend she had. But she couldn’t let anyone else know.

“Do you want anything to eat? Sasha, Reiner, Bertholdt, and Mikasa should be showing up soon.” Jean said casually, giving Annie a glance from atop the fridge door he opened to peer into. 

Annie felt her heart rate quicken at the mention of Mikasa, she decided to ignore it. Blame it on their rude interaction earlier.

“I’m good, thanks. I’ll eat whatever leftovers Sasha mauls into.”

Jean giggled a bit at this and poured himself a glass of orange juice, despite it nearing 3pm now. He sipped the drink and sighed in satisfaction, causing Marco to giggle. 

“You’re so weird” The freckled boy jabbed at his boyfriend. 

Jean swatted at Marco’s attempts to tickle him, protecting his orange juice. Annie watched them, slightly entertained. Another jab at her heart woke her up from her trance as she felt the longing to be close to another person. 

She had always thought she was far too bothered for someone to tolerate her, and she had a habit of pushing away new people, being rude to them to the point where they hate her. Annie did it intentionally, casting her feelings aside and ensuring her own safety. 

It seems self sabotage runs in the family. 

Annie got bored, finally deciding to mull over into the living room, watching Eren and Ymir now locked into a game of Call of Duty. Her lips twitched upwards as Eren screamed at the TV, Ymir grinning in victory. 

Historia ws laughing her ass off on the couch and Annie hadn’t even noticed that Sasha had come in, standing confusedly at the manic group. Her eyes lit up when she saw Annie and her ponytail swayed as she walked hurriedly towards her. 

“Nervous?” Annie asked, usually not being the one to initiate conversation. 

Sasha laughed, a little forced and glanced around. Annie mentally thanked whatever gods there were that there was only a small height difference between the two. 

“Yeah, I’m just not used to so many people being around, you know?” Sasha laughed again and folded her arms, sinking more inwardly. 

Annie knew it was probably stupid, but she was genuinely shocked. Sasha was so sweet and sociable, not hesitating to jump into conversation or make funny remarks during class. The blonde thought her cheery friend was either stupid or confident, and she definitely wasn’t stupid. Icy blue eyes quint as she sifts through solutions in her mind. Maybe Sasha was having an off day, Annie would be naive to think her friend never got sad. 

Annie slung her arm around her semi-friend, causing Sasha to giggle and the blonde guided them towards the kitchen. She told Sasha to sit at the dining and began fixing her a peanut butter fluff sandwich. Sasha didn’t say much, but she looked like a little kid excited for their mom making their favorite lunch item. 

Annie smirked a bit but kept her face mostly bored, sifting through Jeans massive pantry for some marshmallow fluff. Ymir swung around the staircase wall to face the dining and kitchen. The tall brunette fake gasped at the sight of Annie handing Sasha the sandwich.

“Is that .. Annie? Exhibiting an act of kindness?” Her fake shock irritated the blonde, and Annie huffed, quirking a challenging eyebrow at Ymir. 

“She was hungry, Fritz, fuck off” 

Ymir raised her hands in surrender and laughed. Annie had always liked Ymir’s laugh, it was booming yet gentle, always filling up the room. Annie enjoyed certain aspects of people more than her peers think. The blonde continued to stare at her teammate with a bored look while Sasha destroyed her sandwich, then mosying onto the pantry in search of chips. 

Ymir stared back, leaning down to meet Annie’s eye level. It was obvious she was trying not to laugh, and Annie quirked up her lips up as well. This had to be a challenge of some sort. Everyone else was yelling at the TV over some video game in the living room, they both held their stares, not daring to blink. Ymir let a sly grin into her expression and promptly got up, moving swiftly to the living room. Her voice was strong when she yelled for everyone to stop “being so goddamn loud”, and ordered for her friends to get off the floor and make room. 

Annie was confused, but interested in humoring whatever Ymir’s idea was. She usually came up with the dumbest ideas among friends, but also the most entertaining. While the tall freckled boxer was pushing the couches around, ignoring everyone’s questions thrown at her, Annie had noticed Reiner, Connie, and Bertholdt had arrived. Probably while she was fixing a sandwich to cheer Sasha up. 

No mikasa, Annie thought, mildly disappointed. But she wouldn’t dare ask again where the raven haired girl is. She might just be running late anyway, although she didn’t seem like the type.

Once Ymir was done pushing the couches around, she stood in the middle of the now-cleared room, she clapped her hands together and grinned at her confused, blanket wrapped peers. 

Annie noticed most of them were in pyjamas, she realized she didn’t even stop at home for a change of clothes. Ymir turned to Annie, who had retreated in the crowd around the now-empty living room. 

“Annie! My second favorite blonde” She boomed, pointing a long arm at her boxing partner. Historia giggled and Armin looked mildly offended. 

“Would you step up, please my dear?” Ymir gave a sweet smile with a hint of malice. She was like a fox, you could trust the freckled girl until she gave you a reason not to.

Annie didn’t enjoy being the center of attention like this, she pulled her white sweater sleeves over her knuckles as she grumbled into the center of the huge room, standing face to face with the other boxer. 

Annie glanced around, making sure to keep her face controlled so her peers didn’t know how nerve wracking this was for her. Icy blue eyes meet sly warm brown ones as Ymir gets into a boxing position. 

Eyebrows were raised, all eyes on Annie now. 

She wanted to have a fight, she’d get one.

The stout blonde shifted her feet and raised her balled fists up around her face, Ymir was quick, but Annie was quicker. She silently hoped the punches wouldn’t sting as bad from the absence of boxing gloves. 

They took a second, analyzing each other, they were in completely different levels of their sport, not often paired up with one another. Annie caught Jean and Sasha leaning in, anxious for the outcome. They seemingly weren’t the only ones encaptured.

Ymir moved fast as a fox, coming at Annie with a fist extending to her face. Annie moved to the left by a fraction, causing her opponent to stumble forward from the momentum of her own punch. The blonde seized this moment and grabbed Ymir’s wrist, pulling her forward into her jutted knee. Ymir slammed right into Annie, the only sign of pain she showed was a slight scowl and knit eyebrows. 

The blonde huffed as she let go of Ymir. She no longer cared about the eyes fixed on her. Although she did catch a glimpse of red as she pushed her opponent away, letting her have another opening to strike. 

Mikasa. 

Annie faltered for just a second, locking eyes with Mikasa before ripping them away to stare down Ymir, but it was too late. Ymir seized this opportunity and moved quickly to slice her legs underneath Leonhart, the move was far too easy. Annie blamed that on their height difference. Ymir stood triumphantly over Annie as Historia let out a little whoop from the dead-shocked crowd. 

Annie’s eyes met Ymir’s, Fritz started counting as to taunt her opponent, shoving it into her face that she had lost. 

One 

Annie latched her feet under Ymir’s ankles

Two 

She pulled hard. Causing Ymir to lose her balance and stumble a bit. 

Three 

Annie twisted, tripping Ymir. They quickly changed places as the blonde popped up as fast as she could. Her freckled opponent looked up at her with spite— but also a hint of amusement. She sighed and outstretched her hand. A peace treaty. 

Annie rolled her eyes and took it, noticing Ymir's fine tuned muscles in her arm accompanied with a tinge of jealousy. If there was one thing her tall friend had that she didn’t, it was grace. The blonde shoved down the thought and helped her peer up.

Ymir stood and walked over to Historia, putting an arm around her girlfriend as if she hadn’t just gotten her ass handed to her. The group of teenagers giggled and shoved Reiner and Eren into the circle. Annie laughed a bit, going to stand by Sasha and watch. 

“I think Ymir just started a fight club,” Sasha said, not daring to peel her eyes away from the two boys who had clearly never fought anyone. Eren eventually tackled Reiner with a yell, making everyone laugh. It was not an exaggeration that Reiner did not budge. He kind of just stood there as Erens small frame layed ineffective punch after punch. Annie held back a snort watching Eren try to do some damage, Braun was practically like a wall. 

Armin had to peel Reiner out of the chokehold he put Eren in, Jaeger had been tapping at Reiner’s arm wheezing “uncle”, but Braun decided to mess with him and ask him to speak up.

Annie had to admit that was the most entertaining thing she’s seen in a while, despite the nagging presence of Ackerman a few feet away. Mikasa was watching all nonchalant, leaned up against the staircase wall and occasionally raising curious eyebrows at Eren, who had asked Jean to check out his leg for injuries. 

Annie rolled her eyes, it was pretty easy to tell nothing was wrong with him, but Jean was practically the mom friend of the whole group, and Eren was obviously feigning cfor attention. Armin enthusiastically offered, but his crush had pretended not to hear him. Annie kind of felt bad for him, he was a sweet kid, but she couldn’t help but think he deserved better than Jaeger. 

Armin was now leaning by Mikasa, chatting a little absentmindedly while she nodded along. But Annie could notice the glazed look in her eyes, Annie kept watching until their eyes locked. 

They were so intense, a stormy grey with flecks of silver, even from across the room Annie struggled to catch her breath. Annie was determined not to look away first, like some sort of struggle for dominance. 

Mikasa seemed to catch the vibe and eventually Armin stopped talking, and resorted to glancing confusedly between the both of them. Annie squinted into the stare, refusing to even blink. She hadn’t noticed Sasha left her side until she spotted her sneaking up behind Mikasa. 

Oh come on.

Braus promptly pushed Mikasa onto Annie, it was a good shove. The blonde probably shouldn’t be surprised since Sasha could bench a slightly lighter weight than Annie, and that was something.

Mikasa stumbled and caught herself right before she collided with Annie, Their height difference had never seemed so vast until now. The thought of being objectively beautiful was all Annie could focus on as Mikasa slightly leaned into her from the momentum of the push. Their eyes stayed locked and Mikasa leaned down, Annie didn’t know what to expect. 

She had never let people this close to her, she was even repulsed with friendly affection. Mikasa looked entirely shocked into Annie’s cold critical eyes, a tinge of pink painted across her cheeks. She let go, Pushing Annie away, and walked back over to Sasha to whack her. The blonde felt another tinge in her chest when she remembered Sasha was probably better friends with Mikasa than herself. She hated being so emotional, there were other things she needed to worry about. 

Mikasa didn’t say a word to Annie, just walked away as if it didn’t happen. It’s not like Annie really minded, but she observed most people would apologize after an incident like that. She caught Historia and Ymir giggling at her and Annie made a mental note to trip them in the cafeteria later. Not even sweet Historia could escape the blonde’s temper.

She’s strange, Annie thought, but in a good or bad way? 

Jean and Marco were now in the makeshift ring, trying not to burst out laughing while circling each other. Jean’s eyes were filled with a mischievous glint. 

“Come on, Keirstein!” Reiner boomed, one muscly arm around Bertholdt's waist.

Annie knew something had been brewing between her friends for a while, you’d have to be blind not to notice. Maybe they finally accepted it. Another twinge of jealousy twisted at Annie’s stomach, making her heart flutter in an unpleasant way. 

Annie decided to slip into Jean’s room to get a change of clothes, she knew he’d offer anyway. She decided on a pair of loose boxing shorts and an oversized led zeppelin tee she found in his drawers. They smelled faintly of cologne and the signature warm Jean smell, she smiled to herself and put her favorite white hoodie back on. When She got back downstairs, Everyone’s eyes turned on her again. It made her feel uneasy, but she stared back equally at them. 

“Annie!! Where were you? We think Mikasa and you should fight. You know, to make up for that little incident earlier.'' Sasha winked and guided her dumbfounded friend into the “boxing ring”. 

Annie’s heart was racing, Mikasa was also standing awkwardly in the center of the living room, probably thrown into there by the same goofy brunette. Annie rolled her eyes, Sasha always loved to play matchmaker, and Connie had way too many crazy ideas to pair their friends up. 

Annie remembered their altercation at the bleachers earlier, and suddenly felt an urge to prove her superiority to Ackerman. She rolled her hoodie sleeves up as they circled each other for a moment, waiting for an opening. Mikasa went right in and tackled Annie, to the ground. They suddenly started fighting like children roughhousing, all of Annie’s boxing knowledge gone out the window. 

Mikasa was strong, and goddamn beautiful, Annie thought. She knew her teammates were objectively pretty, but none of them took her breath away like Mikasa. They rolled around, trying to pin the other down, both eventually grinning like idiots. They kept struggling after each other until Mikasa finally gave up, staying still, panting under Annie for the required three seconds. 

The blonde blushed at the sight of Ackerman under her, sweating but smiling. Butterflies fluttered in Annie’s stomach, she tried to gain back her composure, but Mikasa’s smile was contagious. 

“I win” Annie breathed, a triumphant grin painted on her face. Mikasa narrowed her eyes and sat up. 

“Hm, looks like you did. I’ll be expecting a rematch sometime” Mikasa said, the venom in her words no longer present. 

Annie had never laughed like that with a complete stranger, and she even gave Mikasa a helping hand when they got up again. Annie’s hand sparked with nerves when it met Mikasa’s, she didn’t understand these feelings, but she craved more of it. 

Connie and Sasha were giggling to each other while looking at them, so that confirmed this was definitely their doing. Annie reminded herself to try and set Sasha up in some embarrassing situation to get back at her. 

-

Mikasa was panting after her fight with Annie, thrilled to make some memories with the girl, finally. She already felt dumb after almost knocking into her blonde maybe-crush, and a little red from losing. Mikasa normally wouldn’t submit to defeat in a stupid fight like that, but she felt a tugging to give Annie the satisfaction of winning. She found herself exhilarated in the eyesight of her icy blue eyes. She wanted to get to know Annie, to knock down her walls and get through to her. 

Mikasa absentmindedly scratched at her scar as she retreated to her previous spot with Armin. She gave Annie a nervous smile before breaking the eye contact, the blonde half-smirked back and nodded her head. 

God she’s so pretty, Mikasa thought, I want to be hers. 

This kind of vulnerability scared Mikasa. She wasn’t used to pining after anyone like this, much less wanting to be in the presence of others. Despite her newfound feelings, the raven haired girl still had a desire to be alone, to decompress from the long day. 

Ymir saw this sufficient, apparently, and started to move the couches and rugs back into place. Historia tried her best to help, and Mikasa thought it was adorable how sweet Ymir was, but only to her girlfriend. Stormy eyes squint at the couple as Mikasa observes their mannerisms, wondering if she could ever mimic them with Annie. They laugh and Historia blushes at a quip of her partners, Ymir then sits on the now-arranged couches and takes Historia in her arms. 

Mikasa finds herself trying to mimic Ymir's sweet smile, and Armin waves his hand in front of Mikasa’s face.

“Earth to ‘Kasa?” 

Mikasa blinked and averted her eyes to Armin, immediately relaxing her face. 

“Guess I was just zoning out,” Mikasa mumbled, suddenly finding the floor much more interesting than painful eye contact. 

Armin laughed, more air than voice. “You were imitating peoples’ faces again.” He said, as if she already didn’t know. 

He leaned a little closer. “You don’t have to imitate other people, you know. You’re amazing just the way you are.” He gave Mikasa a reassuring smile and nodded off to go find Eren, who was probably harping on Reiner for winning. 

Armin was one of the only people that truly understood Mikasa, he knew she wasn’t some bitch, or heartless, like some people whispered about her. He is also extremely observant, always noticing Mikasa’s moods. She was grateful to have someone like him to understand her. 

Socializing had always been hard for her. Growing up partially isolated then suddenly being thrust into society was hard. It felt like everyone else had a head start in getting to know the world, while Mikasa was constantly struggling to catch up. 

Some people had told her she was attractive and mysterious with her blunt personality and scar. Mikasa found this both suprising and stupid, seeing how she had no idea how to act in public, and stuck to being reserved, preferably invisible. It was the easiest way to protect herself.

Jean heated up generous helpings of lasagna for the group, the smell wafting from the kitchen made Mikasa’s stomach growl. She rushed to fix herself a plate before Sasha and Connie absolutely demolished it. 

Once getting a nice piece of cheesy goodness and a sprite, she made herself comfortable on one of the luxurious couches positioned around the TV. Then, all she could see were icy blue eyes growing closer, until Annie was standing directly in front of her with a plate of lasagna in her hands. 

“Mind if I sit?” She asked, a bored expression that didn’t quite reach her eyes. Mikasa wondered if she was just as nervous. 

Play it cool play it cool. 

“Here? Yeah, if you want” She shrugged back, nonchalantly as possible while sipping at her sprite. Mikasa could feel the couch sink next to her as Annie positioned herself criss-crossed at her side. Mikasa was sitting with her legs all curled up on the couch, plate in lap, and - not to panic - right next to Annie. 

Mikasa couldn’t stop her heart from racing as everyone took their spots, some on the pristine carpet floor while others huddled on the couches. Jean was the last to walk in, taking a seat with Marco on the floor. 

“Movie?” Everyone nodded in unison, and Sasha yelled out The Craft. Armin agreed enthusiastically and Eren gave him a weird look. 

“What!” Armin protested, “It has a good plot!” 

Eren snickered to himself and grabbed a blanket from under the couch.

What doesn’t this house have? Mikasa though absentmindedly. 

It was a unanimous decision for the Craft, Jean referred to it as a Witch Chick Flick but eagerly put it on. Mikasa laughed a bit at her friend, knowing how much he secretly enjoyed films like this.

Connie volunteered to turn off the lights like an excited elementary schooler and rushed back to his spot on the floor with Sasha as the opening credits began to play. 

Mikasa took a second to look around the room, just to see how everyone ended up. In the center's longest couch, Historia had taken to laying in Ymir’s arms, her partner absentmindedly playing with her hair as she snuggled a tad more. 

On the other side of the same couch, Armin was practically doing the same thing with Eren, except Armin looked completely rigid and red as Eren combed his hands through his “friends” hair. They were so obviously pining after eachother, if only Eren could get over his stupid distraction crush on Jean. 

On the smaller couch directly across from Mikasa, Reiner and Bertholdt had taken to each other's arms. Bertholdt's head in Reiner’s lap, propped by a pillow as he lay facing the television, his long legs hanging off the end of the couch. Reiner had a hand playing with his maybe-boyfriends soft hair, but Braun wasn’t paying attention to the movie. 

The blonde boy seemed to be in a silent conversation with Annie, Her eyebrows were raised at him in a questioning look, Reiner shook his head no in return, Annie’s eyes radipdly flicked from Reiner’s eyes to Bertholdt laying in his lap, the giant completely oblivious to the silent interrogation going on. Reiner rolled his head at Annie and averted his attention back to the movie. 

Mikasa snorted a bit to herself, but more to what she had just witnessed and scanned the rest of the room. Connie and Sasha huddled together, making comments about the movie and obnoxiously eating snacks, Marco and Jean cuddled up under the same blanket, leaning up against one of the couches. 

It was a nice sight, Mikasa smiled gently to herself at the comfortable ambience of the room. Her full scan of her friends left her eyes right on Annie, who was turned away from her watching the movie. 

Mikasa studied the way her knees were hugged to her chest, arms around her shins, the slight contour of her calf muscles made Mikasa’s breath hitch. She’s so beautiful, Ackerman thought, how can she be real. 

Mikasa wasn’t even paying attention to the movie when the snake showed on screen, apparently a strange homeless man delivered it to the main character, Mikasa was busy studying Annie. The blonde twitched a little and covered her eyes quickly.

Could she be afraid of snakes? Mikasa pondered. Annie was gripping the couch and kept her eyes shut tight, her breathing had increased, chest rising and falling rapidly.

Mikasa did what any concerned friend did and pulled a blanket out from underneath the couch, draping it over her and Annie. Annie tensed up for a moment, then relaxed under the soft fabric. Mikasa leaned over and tucked a soft blonde strand behind Annie’s ear. 

“The snakes aren’t on screen any more, it’s okay” Mikasa whispered. 

Annie slowly opened her cold eyes to meet Mikasa’s warm ones, a little bewildered, but grateful nonetheless. Mikasa gave the warmest smile she could muster, wondering if she copied Ymir’s expression well, and leaned back against the couch, pretending to be interested in the move. Annie got settled as well, though a little closer to Mikasa. 

Throughout the movie, Annie inched closer and closer, adjusting the blanket everytime she did. Mikasa tried to focus, but her heart was beating so fast she was afraid everyone else in the room could hear. Eventually, Annie made the push and leaned her head on Mikasa’s shoulder, not daring to look her in the eyes. Mikasa was afraid to adjust herself, wondering if the slightest moment would scare this precious moment. Soft snores interrupted Mikasa’s deep train of thought.

No way, she stared at Annies sleeping face, She was now resting in Mikasa’s arms. Mikasa’s heart was racing, she tried to steady her breath in fear of waking up this beautiful girl, but she was fast asleep. 

Mikasa adjusted herself very carefully, and now Annie was laying on top of Mikasa, being cradled by Ackermans graceful arms. 

The raven haired girl smiled to herself and let her head down, the movie was coming to an end, and the room was quiet. Sleep came warmly, but not as warm as Annie snuggling up to her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> IM SICK SO. that means more updates! your guys’ comments make my day, any feedback is appreciated. i hope this didn’t feel too rushed, expect another update tomorrow ^-^


	4. damnit, sasha

The next morning was groggy for Annie, she blinked her eyes open and looked around, catching everybody sprawled across the floor or couch. It took a moment for her to realize she was on top of someone. Annie rapidly sat up, eyes widening at a sleeping Mikasa Ackerman.

Damn, Annie huffed, she even looks good in her sleep.

Her blonde bun came undone as she scrambled off of Ackerman, going to scrub her mouth with listerine from her bad breath. Nobody else was up, not to Annie’s surprise. The room was quiet with the occasional snore, she had a tendency to be a little on edge around other people.

Annie was confused, if anything. When had she even ended up in Mikasa’s arms? They didn’t drink last night or anything like that so she had full retentiion of her momeory. All she remembers is the thinking one of the girls in the movie was hot and a hand rubbing on her arm, sending chills through her body as the touch lulled her to sleep. 

Fuck, Annie thought, how am I going to face her now.

The blonde felt embarrassed, and felt the need to go home as she poured herself a glass of water. She wanted to get cleaned up and hit the gym, to spar and practice off this mess. Once Sasha had told her working out constantly was a bad coping mechanism, and Annie had found that to be complete bullshit. She enjoyed being strong, and she hated feeling helpless.

Maybe one day Annie would fall out of her habit for complete control, maybe even go to therapy. She snickered while sipping her water at the thought of sitting on a stuffy couch openly admitting her feelings. The idea was both humorous and terrifying. 

Annie decided not to stick around, it would be better for her to spend the weekend alone, recharging. Upon grabbing her bag and clothes from the previous day, she hesitated at the door. 

Mikasa looked beautiful in the morning light, the rest of the group seemed completely peaceful, all united over one principal feeling — friendship. Annie felt a pang in her heart as she reminded herself she doesn’t belong here, and everyone else knew it. She’ll never be part of something like this, it was a stupid thing to waste time over it. 

“See you, Annie” Armin whispered, holding a sleepy Eren.

Annie jumped at the voice and met his pretty blue eyes. For a moment, she wished she could have a blue reflecting out of her that was warmer, kinder. 

“Bye, Armin” She said and opened the heavy door.  
The air stung her face a bit, she blew a strand of blonde hair over her face and set off for home. The air chilled her exposed legs as she walked briskly down the block. She hadn’t texted her father back at all, despite his worried voicemails. Annie smirked in self-satisfaction, he deserved to feel worried. 

After the semi-long walk, she felt in desparate need of a shower, she wanted to wash off all the stupid emotions and the grime that accompanied them.

Annie unlocked her chipped front door as quietly as she could, and walked boldly onto the front steps of her house. 

Dont be afraid, Annie thought, You’re stronger than him now. 

She made sure to put on the most bored face she could manage and walk in. Her father was asleep on the recliner, he probably dozed off the night before and hasn’t woken up yet. 

She observed the several empty beer bottles laying on the floor around his, she looked at him with an edge of disgust. Alcohol disgusted her, cigarettes have never been appealing, either. Although Annie could see herself trying one out some day, only at rock bottom though. 

Annie’s blonde hair bounced slightly as she made her way up the stairs, not bothering to stay silent for her worthless father. She cranked the water on after getting a fresh change of clothes and ran her hand under the stream until it was scalding. Before she closed the shower curtain, Annie caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror. She looked beat down, although the sharp contour of her muscles gave her a satisfied feeling. 

Once all dried off, Annie figured it was too early for the gym, considering it’s a saturday and Jean definitely hasn’t gone to open up yet. She sighed, laying on her bed facing the ceiling. It’s not like she wasn’t happy about Marco and Jean, in fact, she didn’t care in the slightest, she felt some joy that Jean would maybe leave her alone more. A question stuck around in her brain, annoyingly reoccuring throughout the day.

Could I possibly connect with anyone?

After a bit of staring at the ceiling feeling sorry for herself, Annie suddenly felt quite bored and grabbed her switch controllers, toggling the home button until her TV came to life. She scrolled through her games, satisfied at the collection she worked hard for.

It didn’t take long to see blinking from her icon, she felt a little confused considering she had no added friends, uopn clicking she saw the words 1 Friend Request: Armin:)

Weird. How did he even get my code?

Annie decided to accept it after chuckling a bit at his Princess Peach icon, she thought he was nice, a little too sensitive for her taste but sweet nonetheless.

Annie quickly emerged herself in the world of Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. The design graphics amazed her every time, and the animated shrines gave her a nice sense of satisfaction when she acquired a spirit orb after finishing. 

Leonhart thought it was a bit nerdy, but she really did enjoy the games’ lore. The intricacies of the champions’ stories, the expanding plot, the divine beasts, everything about it allowed Annie to escape. She had gotten herself pretty invested in the game, although no one knew. She let her guard down, running from an animated Booblin, and let herself escape to the graphics of the Hyrule plains. 

-

Mikasa’s eyes blinked open, an absence of heat disturbing her from pleasant sleep. Annie was gone, did Mikasa scare her off? This can’t be good.

Jean’s house was bristling alive, Sasha was chowing on some cheez-itz as she tried to stop Connie from yelling at their silent game of Mario Kart. Armin was scrolling on his phone, Eren snoring slightly on his chest. 

Reiner was leaning on Bertholdt's shoulder, they seemed to be watching something together on Berts phone, laughing in unison every couple seconds. 

Marco was still sleeping on the floor when Jean brought him some french toast, Mikasa smiled at the two of them, Jean had such a soft spot for Marco, it's easy to forget the guy could beat anyone in this rooms’ ass. 

No Annie. Mikasa’s heart sunk in the absence of her favorite blonde. (Don’t tell Armin that, though)

Ackerman was admittedly a little confused at her relationship with Leonhart, but that didn’t stop her from wanting more of the blonde. She wanted to feel her icy critical stare bore into her, to feel belonged to. 

Mikasa was torn out of her pining by a quiet ‘psst’ from Armin’s direction. He had his glasses on, and looked frankly adorable in them.

“Are you okay, ‘Kasa?” He whispered over, careful to not disturb Mikasa’s brother sleeping on top of him. 

Mikasa gave him a faint, blink-and-you-miss-it smile, one only he would register as an act of reassurance, 

“Yes,” She whispered back, “Just wondering where Annie could have gone.” Mikasa was careful to not let the disappointment edge into her words, but she doubted it would go unnoticed by her best friend. 

“Don’t worry” His blue eyes shined from behind his thick black frames. In mikasa’s opinion, Armin’s beauty was unique and rare. 

“I saw her leave this morning, she seemed a little overwhelmed” He reassured, giving Mikasa a little nod before going back to whatever he was doing before on his phone. 

Mikasa sighed and leaned back against the couch arm, missing Annie’s warmth and pressure on top of her. It had been a long time since Mikasa felt any kind of physical touch like that, it was exhilarating, and a little terrifying. 

She never thought she would crave something that scared her, yet here she was, Annie Leonhart occupying her thoughts. 

Mikasa noticed Armin struggling to shift positions under her snoring brother, so she took the sweet liberty of whacking the back of his head awake. 

He groaned against Armin’s chest in protest. Armin giggled and looked up at Mikasa pleadingly, he was too sweet to wake up Eren, even if he was uncomfortable. 

Mikasa shook Eren’s shoulders, peeling him away from Armin as her brother tried to nuzzle closer into the crook of the blonde's neck. Armin was blushing profusely under his glasses, he pushed them up by the bridge and laughed, clearly flustered. 

“It’s okay, Mikasa, he can sleep a little longer” Armin whispered to her, Jaeger was clinging tight onto his best friend, determined not to let his sister ruin his sleep. 

Mikasa rolled her eyes at her clingy brother and walked smoothly into the kitchen, refusing pancakes from Jean while mumbling something about being nauseous from food in the morning. Sasha sat down next to Ackerman at the dining table, a piece of toast being shoved into her mouth. 

“Where did ya girlfriend go?” The brunette asked innocently, her words muffled from the toast she was still working on.

Mikasa cringed slightly at Sasha talking with food in her mouth, but she found it strangely endearing. 

“Please do not call her that, we barely know each other” Mikasa whispered back, not wanting to pique anyone elses interest in the conversation. Sasha was Mikasa’s only friend beside her brother and Armin, and she didn’t want anyone else knowing how she felt except her small group. And Connie, because it would be cruel to ask Sasha to keep anything from her self-proclaimed ‘twin’. 

Mikasa giggled a bit at Sasha’s expression, she looked a bit like a chipmunk who wanted to interrogate you, she pretty much was. Mikasa silently prayed her pining for Annie wasn’t too obvious, but considering even Sasha noticed it, it was safe to assume everyone else did. 

Mikasa groaned a bit and wondered if she could crash at Armin’s until sunday night, she didn’t really feel like going back home to isolate herself for the rest of the weekend. 

Connie walked over to the dining table and flicked Sasha’s forehead, her eyebrows furrowed as she let out a whine of frustration, not being able to open her mouth from the food she was eating. Connie rolled his eyes to her and stuck out his tongue, then turned to Mikasa, who had been observing the whole ordeal as if she were at a museum. 

“Any plans this weekend?” He asked nonchalantly, seemingly unaffected by Mikasa’s usual intimidating demeanor. 

Mikasa liked Connie, his confidence made her feel sure of herself, maybe it was contagious. He raised his eyebrows at her, still waiting for an answer.

“Umm.. No. Probably going to hang out at Armin’s” Ackerman replied rather quickly, not sure how to position the tone in her voice. 

Connie grinned at her, his smile found to be contagious as well. 

“Nice, want to go see a movie with me and Sash?” 

Mikasa was very taken aback at this, but tried not to let it slip through her composure. Connie and Sasha usually ran around together all weekend, no one really managing to keep up. She felt kind of flattered that they wanted to include her in their plans, maybe it could be fun.

“Sure,” Mikasa sputtered out, maintaining her face to its usual resting glare.

“What time?”

Connie seemed shocked that she actually said yes, and Sasha giggled at the two of them.

“Awesome, Sunday at 8 at the local theatre work for you?” He wore an ear-to-ear grin, Mikasa thought he couldn’t possibly be that excited over some movie. Maybe he had invited her because he thought she was cute, although Connie’s never shown an interest in anyone, unlike the rest of the boys in their group. 

Mikasa nodded in response, turning her head back to the water she was sipping. She expected Connie to wander on to the kitchen, instead he stood there silently celebrating with Sasha. When Mikasa turned her head to look at the pair, they both went still, trying to suppress their giggles.

Sasha and Connie were undoubtedly up to something. 

-

Mikasa walked with Eren home, her brother claiming he wanted some alone time before joining his friends at Armin’s house. Mikasa noticed something was up with him, seeing the conflicted look in his emerald green eyes. He seemed to be one of the only people she truly understood.

Leaves crunched underneath their steps as the Jaeger residence grew closer, Eren walked slightly hunched, not saying a word despite his energetic mood two mornings ago. Mikasa shot him a concerned look which he ignored, keeping his eyes fixed on the ground moving underneath them. 

“Eren, if something’s wrong, you can always talk to me” Mikasa whispered, relying on her brothers acute senses to be heard. 

Eren laughed, a light airy chuckle that was meant more for diffusing the situation than to actually laugh. This wasn’t missed by his sister, Eren thought she was always annoyingly in tune with his emotions.

“I’m fine Mika, I just want to shower and relax for a bit.” He said, some fake enthusiasm sprinkled in on top of his exhausted tone. 

Mikasa smiled slightly at the use of the nickname, he had made it up when they were little, it made her feel special, like she belonged to something. 

“Alright Eren, just promise you’ll show up later so I can kick your ass in Mario Kart” Mikasa elbowed her shorter brother lightheartedly, he giggled and shot her a small grin, more genuine this time. 

Ackerman grabbed a pair of clothes and showered quickly, not bothering to wash her hair, a dark red hoodie and black tattered mom jeans always did the job. She packed a bag of snacks, chargers, journal, a change of clothes and earbuds and set off towards Armin’s house. 

She had always thought it was convenient that her friends lived so close to the Jaeger house, her childhood home was far from here on the side of Clif Sina, a daring ridge at the edge of Shiganshina. 

Mikasa wondered what wildlife now grew within her home, if the Ackerman residence had become a part of nature. She smiled somberly as she walked, occasionally adjusting her scarf to fit over her nose. My parents would have loved that, Mikasa thought. 

Mikasa didn’t even get a chance to knock before a beaming Armin answered the door, excitedly ushering his friend in and running to his room, dragging Mikasa’s hand in tow. 

Once Mikasa got settled in his room, she took in the walls painted different hues of blue riddled with minecraft posters, and the various stuffed animals lining his bed. She always thought it was a perfect reflection of her friend, and quite frankly adorable. 

“Mikasa! I’m so glad you got here!” He said excitedly, out of breath. 

“Today we can play so much Minecraft and build on our world! Then maybe I was thinking you could play some more breath of the wild on my switch? I’m dying for you to make some progress! Plus I don't really mind watching it. I think it’s really interesting how you play the game.” He barely got his words out coherently, clearly ecstatic to spend some time with his best friend. 

Mikasa giggled at her overenthusiastic friend, absentmindedly wondering how the two ever became so close with such contrasting personalities. They got some chips and laid belly first on his floor, a creeper blanket sprawled out so the carpet wouldn’t hurt their elbows. The pair had just begun to gather more supplies for the large minecraft tree house they’d been working on for months before Mikasa’s phone buzzed. 

A text from Sasha? Okay.. 

sasha braus:  
hanging with your girl!!!  
1 image:  
3:15pm

A blurred photo of Annie swatting the camera away. Oh my god. Annie. Mikasa quickly shut off her phone before the blush creeping on her cheeks grew hotter. 

Why was Sasha at Annie’s? Why was Mikasa so flustered over a stupid picture? Mikasa threw her phone on Armin’s bed and buried her face in a pillow. 

Armin chuckled beside her, eyes still fixed on the screen as he tried to fight off an Enderman in a cave. 

“What?” He laughed. “Hear any news about your giiirrllfriend?” He paused the game and looked over tauntingly at Mikasa, who was glaring up from the pillow, still trying to hide her blush. 

“She’s not my girlfriend Armin! She just.. fell asleep.. on top of me” 

Armin quirked his eyebrow at her, an innocent but accusing grin creeped on his face, making Mikasa even more flustered at the fact that he caught on. She honestly shouldn’t be surprised, Armin noticed everything. 

“Well.. It’s not like you and Eren’s obvious pining isn’t super noticeable !” Mikasa snapped back, not an ounce of venom in her voice.

Armin blushed furiously and turned back to his game, rapidly punching at the enderman in front of him. A hint of a smile teased his face, but he was still pretending to be mad at Mikasa. 

Mikasa smiled triumphantly and picked up her controllers, unpausing the game to meet a creeper right behind her, it blew up before she had a chance to run, killing her while she was in the depths of a huge cave. Ackerman groaned when she respawned, not knowing where to begin to look for her lost items. 

Armin stuck his tongue out at his sulking friend. 

“That’s what you get!!” He giggled before Mikasa seized his controller and punt him in a pit of lava.

“Heyy” he shouted accusingly. “That’s why I have keep inventory on, you snake!” He laughed. 

Mikasa grumbled before taking a snack break on her phone, blushing fruously at the picture of Annie before deleting it from her and Sasha’s conversation. 

Miksa had begun to play a mindless game of crossy road before Eren burst in. Eyes lit up from excitement. 

“Armin!!” He cheered as he plopped down in his usual spot on the floor next to Mikasa. 

“Eren!” Armin lit up at the sight of his best friend and adjusted so his head was in the darker-haired boy's lap, propped up so he could still play Minecraft. Eren happily played with Armin’s hair, and the blonde leaned into the touch.

Eren caught Mikasa narrowing her eyes at them in question. He stuck his tongue out at his sister with a sour expression on his face before he turned back to the TV.

“Armin! Lava!” He half shouted before Armin squealed, accidentally jerking his controller and landing in the Lava. 

“Aw man..” Eren said with a fake sad face on, they both watched the respawn screen pop up before giggling with eacother. Armin hiccuping a bit through his laughs. 

Mikasa smiled at the two, she felt all warm and fuzzy with her best friends, she caught her brother's eye, smiling a bit more. He smiled in return and hunched over Armin to reach for the chips.

“Hey!” The blonde boy protested while giggling.

Mikasa watched Armin play fondly, happy to belong to something. 

-

Annie was drifting asleep when the brunette burst in, wearing a wild expression on her face. 

“Hey Annie! Thought I’d just let myself in, nice room! Oh my god is that breath of the wild” Sasha rambled on, making Annie groan and tuck herself farther into the blankets. 

“It’s been a few hours, Sasha, what do you want?” Annie feigned, slightly annoyed but even more amused. Braus flipped on the switch to Leonhart’s room, making the blonde groan even more. 

The brunette gasped in fake offense. “Can’t I pay my favorite blonde a visit?” Sasha grumbled as she made her self comfortable on Annie’s bedroom floor. 

Annie mumbled something about threteaning Sasha before rolling over again. A few moments of silence piqued her interest. She peeked an icy eye from under her covers to meet Sasha’s phone camera right in front of her. Annie quickly swatted the thing away in complete annoyance, although Sasha was already laughing. 

“I swear to god, don’t send that to anyone” Annie spit as she finally sat up, her bulky hoodie preserving the warmth of the blanket.

Sasha waved her hand in the air as to say she wouldn’t, but Annie heard the sound of a text being sent and lunged at Braus. Sasha yelled out uncle until her friend let up, still holding a piercing stare. Annie caught a glimpse of Sasha phone and flared her nostrils, trying to keep her facial expression under control. 

“Never. Send a picture of me to Mikasa again” Although Annie actually was more annoyed than mad, it was fun to intimidate Sasha.

Braus rapidly waved her hands in the air with meas of admitting defeat.

“I won’t i won’t! Jeez..”

Annie found this acceptable and took her seat on her bed, checking her phone quickly just to receive the normal zero notifications. Good, she thought, no one’s trying to be her friend. Although the situation with Ackerman did need to be sorted out… Maybe if I could try to see her again.. 

Sasha clapped her hands abruptly, snapping her blonde friend out of her Mikasa-induced trance. 

“I came here to ask you if you want to go to the movies sunday night with me and Connie!” She beamed enthusiastically at Annie, who only bothered to raise an unimpressed eyebrow in her direction.

Annie decided to think it over, It couldn’t hurt to doze off during some movie, it beat being at home, even if it would just be for a few hours. Although the sudden interest for Sasha to invite her to something with Connie was perplexing. Annie barely even knew Connie, she only bothered to get to know Sasha because of their shared sport. Springer and Braus usually came in a package deal, but not in the case of Sasha and Annie’s semi-friendship. 

Annie looked away at the expectant brunette and shrugged. 

“Sure, text me the details and get out of my house”

Sasha jumped up and down and hugged Annie quickly, much to the blondes dismay. She plucked the open bag of chips off the floor and hurried out. 

“Okay, Annie!! See you then!” She waved out, Annie heard her thunder down the stairs and out the door. 

Well, that was weird. 

-

Mikasa spent the rest of her Saturday laying around, occasionally playing a heated grand prix of Mario Kart with the boys, always winning, much to their dismay. She rolled her eyes in fake annoyance as Armin cried about his dead mineraft dog, saying something about how he couldn’t protect her. She found it hilarious that her brother was stroking Armin’s hair, mumbling that she (the dog) died protecting what she loved. 

Mikasa adjusted her scarf and walked to pat Armin on the back, the group had already eaten and it was getting late, the time read 2AM as some streamer named Weston prattled on in the background. 

“You guys cuddle up on the floor, I get the bed” Mikasa announced to the two. Both blushing from the mention of ‘cuddling up’. 

“Just try not to make so much noise staying up, Okay?” The two boys nodded and got back to playing Minecraft, presumably making a memorial for Armin’s dead virtual dog. 

Mikasa tried to find sleep, to shut off her brain and pull the blankets closer. Piercing blue eyes boring into her would not leave Ackerman’s mind, thought’s of Annie’s beautiful aquiline nose and soft pink lips kept appearing over and over again behind Mikasa’s closed eyelids. It felt pathetic, but also exhilarating, thinking of the two acting as a couple, although Mikasa was slightly convinced Annie hated her. 

Her heart rattled with a sense of longing when the image of her parents entered her mind. Their sweet words to each other, dancing in the field together as a family, stormy nights when Mikasa had run to their bed in fear. These memories were treasured, buried deep down only to be brought up to relive. 

The only times Mikasa has ever truly belonged were with her parents, her heart hurt again when she realized she may never feel that again. 

It’s better than nothing, she thought, but what could be worse than knowing what love felt like but never being able to achieve it? 

The somber memories of her parents filled Mikasa’s brain, lulling her into a dead sleep with no dreams, only a comforting nothingness. 

-

Annie groaned at the sunlight peeking in through her room, she’d forgotten to close the blinds again and grumbled at the annoying new day. The time couldn’t be past 10am, but when the blonde reached blindly to her phone, the time read 2pm. 

Jesus, how had she slept in so late? Although Annie had nothing to do, she felt a sense of panic that she had messed up the day by sleeping in. Fuck, wasn’t there a thing with Connie and Sasha later? 

A string of texts revealed itself as Annie unlocked her phone, various things like movie’s at 8, wake up already, where are you with way too many question marks. 

Annie sighed in slight annoyance and sent a quick text to Sasha to let her know she’s alive. She absentmindedly thought the brunette would be the death of her if she got too close. How close was she already?

Grumbling back into her bed after checking out her window to check the status of her dad’s car, she wondered where her father could possibly be. Probably gambling this week’s grocery money away, Annie snorted, laughing at the fucked situation. It seems as though nothing is ever easy, and Annie was becoming tired of it. 

She deiced to hit the gym before the stupid movie date, was was honestly just looking for an excuse to get out of her house. She changed and packed quickly, grabbing her ‘VIP keys’ (Jean’s words, not her’s) to the gym in case Jean had closed early for today. After all, not many people felt like getting their asses beat on a Sunday afternoon. 

Annie silently prayed no one was at the gym as she walked quickly down the street, ignoring the sting of cold air tearing up her eyes. 

All the lights were off, but the door was unlocked. Annie narrowed her eyes and silently dropped her bag at the door, hearing grunts and punches from around the corner, where the sandbags and weights lay. Leonhart focused in on the sounds and creeped around the corner, she couldn’t say she wasn’t shocked when she saw a small blonde figure repping away at the sand bag, leaving impressive punches and kicks onto the poor fabric. 

Historia? What the hell could she be doing here. Practicing obviously, Annie mentally punched herself for the stupid question. But why?

After a few more seconds, Annie decided to speak up. Normally, she wouldn’t say a word to anyone else working in the gym, but Historia was really not expected. She was mostly in the gym to support Ymir, and to Annie’s knowledge, she did ballet with Mikasa. Reiss was strangely elegant in the dim lighting of the gym, her hair swiping gracefully along with her quick strikes. 

“You left the door open, you know” Annie’s voice seemed loud, interrupting the quiet of the room. 

Historia jumped slightly and turned around to meet Annie’s eyes. She’d never noticed how chilling they were until now. Annie stood with her gear slung behind her back, giving an indifferent expression to her friend’s partner. 

“Hey, Annie” Historia said sheepishly, rubbing the back of her neck while averting her eyes to the floor. 

Annie honestly had no business wondering why Historia was there, honestly, she would prefer if they both just left eachother alone and continued to practice. But an awkward blanket settled over the air, and Annie felt an obligation to break the tension.

“I thought you did ballet, not boxing?” Annie quirked her eyebrow, expecting an enthusiastic answer from the smaller blonde. 

Historia sucked in a sharp breath. “My ballet instructor doesn’t want me to do boxing, but i come here some times to learn how to defend myself, or blow off some steam” She laughed, recalling the times she’s come to the empty gym to imagine beating the shit out of her father. 

“Fair.” Annie shrugged, unpacking her things, avoiding eye contact with Historia. 

After a moment, Annie recognized the gloves Historia had on, they were the same ones she used before she had her own proper pair, they belonged to Jean.

“Did Jean lend you those gloves?” Annie asked, seeing Historia perk up from the question.

“Uh, yeah, he’s really sweet about all this, let’s me have the gym on the weekends and all that” Historia said with an airy laugh, the one that people did when they weren’t sure where to guide the situation. 

“Yeah,” Annie sighed. “He’s like that”

“Like what?” Historia’s eyes met Leonhart’s again. 

“Too damn sweet for his own good” Annie half smiled, eliciting a laugh from the girl she barely knew in front of her. It felt rewarding to hear her genuine laugh, not the fake one she used at school as if her life depended on it. 

They took a few moments of less-awkward silence before Annie had an idea. Hoping she wouldn’t be too mean to Historia on accident or something, although she suspected Reiss wasn’t as sensitive as she usually let on. Annie needed the practice in training others anyway, Jean couldn’t always be doing all the work. 

Annie walked up to Historia, who had reverted back to assaulting the sand bag, and slightly adjusted her arms before she took a punch, Historia gave the slightly taller blonde a puzzled look before striking the sand bag again, the punch weilding more force than before. 

Historia grinned up at her now-teacher. Wordlessly getting into a defending stance, letting Annie adjust the height of her fists, mumbling something about protecting the core and the face. Historia got into the stance a few more times before Annie approved, and they worked through each punch and kick Historia knew until the sun went down. Annie was suprised at how easy Historia was to work with, she was understanding yet willing to take criticism. The holy grail was that she didn’t ask questions, Annie hated questions. 

Once it was getting late, Annie’s watch reading 7PM, she decided to say a quick goodbye to her new student. Historia reassured she’d get her number, before Annie left, she turned back. Historia gave her one of those winning smiles, and Leonhart couldn’t help but smirk back. Maybe everyone wasn’t as annoying as they led on to be.

Annie barely made it a few steps back to her house before Historia called out, running with a light blue crewneck in her hands.

“Here, Annie! I noticed you don’t have something to cover up on the way home, and I can’t have my teacher getting sick on me, Can I!” Historia didn’t wait around for Annie to deny it, just pushed her sweater into Annie’s shaking hands and ran off to the warmth of the gym.

Annie huffed and put on the sweater once she was sure Historia couldn’t see her. It was cold as fuck, especially when the sun set. Annie never would’ve accepted help, but Historia had the kind of energy that made you want to be cared for, her icy blue eyes squinted as she arrived home, sighing in relief that her father still hasn’t returned home.

She didn’t bother to wash her hair, it was just Connie and Sasha at the movie’s anyway. She dressed in an old boxing hoodie and her usual loose jeans, paired with an extra denim jacket for the cold. Annie’s head turned when her phone lit up, a text from Sasha.

sasha (loser):   
need a ride?  
7:15pm

Annie thought for a second, watching the typing bar blink blue on and off.

annie:  
sure, don’t keep me waiting  
7:16pm

It beat the 30 minute walk to the theatres in the cold, Annie shrugged and went to sit out on her front steps. Observing her breath showing every time she exhaled in the cold air. 

When Sasha pulled up in her shitty dark blue car, she rolled down the window and called for Annie a little too loud. Annie got in with a huff and rolled her eyes, an aura of indifference surrounding her. 

It was strange that Connie wasn’t with Sasha, there was no point in making him wait at the theatres, and Annie knew damn well Connie wasn’t at home since the two were practically glued together. 

“Connie?” Annie absentmindedly asked, hoping Sasha wouldn’t catch onto her suspicion. The thought that this could be another date set-up jarred Annie, it made sense, but there was no way of telling she was correct until they got there. Sasha could be a pretty convincing liar when she wanted to be, luckily Annie wasn’t naive. 

“Oh he’s in line for snacks, We figure we’d get more if we don’t wait for you” Sasha waved her hand dismissively, eyes glued to the dark twists and turns through their small town. 

Annie shrugged, finding this logical before turning up the music, the radio apparently still connected to Sasha’s aux. Sounds of some indie band filled the chilling air, Sasha drummed her fingers on the steering wheel to the beat, and Annie smiled at her, Braus was pretty special. Sasha caught her eye and smiled back, immediately looking back at the road.

Annie felt warmth in her chest, noticing how Sasha didn’t tease her for the sentimental moment, the blonde had a feeling Sasha wouldn’t tell anyone about it, either. 

Once they pulled up to the movie theatre, Annie spotted Connie's silhouette talking animatedly to a suspiciously familiar shadow. 

No way, Annie thought, they wouldn’t dare. 

As her and Sasha walked up to the big doors, the bright lights illuminated Connie’s face, Annie watched as Sasha slung her arm around her friend. Annie assumed the other figure she saw was something she imagined, until she met those unmistakable stormy eyes. 

Mikasa looked back at her with equal bewilderment, their eyes locked for what seemed like forever, Annie’s eyebrows furrowed into some confused glare, Mikasa just stared back breathlessly. 

“Well, gang!” Sasha slung each of her arms around their confused shoulders.   
“Let’s go see a movie!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this one was so fun to write.. id love to hear what you guys think!! have a nice day/night, update will be soon


	5. romantic comedies are a portal for confused pining

Mikasa’s heart was racing, annoyingly thundering beats filled her ears as the group navigated their way up to the highest row in the theatre. The room was dimly lit, Ackerman prayed the glow of the commercials didn’t reveal her agonizing blush. 

Annie seemed shocked upon seeing her, but quickly maintained her composure throughout the snack line. Mikasa felt dumb, she hated feeling inferior in any situation, but especially not within the gaze of Annie’s critical stare. 

Mikasa had snagged some popcorn, figuring it could be a peace offering between her and the intmidating blonde beside her. Her heart was racing so fast she wondered if Annie noticed. 

I can’t believe Sasha did this, MIkasa thought. They’ve always loved to play matchmaker, but this was on a different level. 

Sasha leaned over to Mikasa in the dark theatre. “This was Connie’s idea, not mine” She answered, as if reading Mikasa’s mind. 

As if that atoned Sasha, The brunette was actually getting quite anxious knowing both the girls liked payback, in a setup like this it’s guaranteed in Braus’ future.

Sasha sunk deeper into her chair, talking an obnoxious glob of popcorn from Mikasa, she had never seen her stoic friend so stiff, even that one time when Jean kissed her on a dare. 

Mikasa had gotten her heart rate under control, but the blush didn’t seem to be going anywhere, this was probably her own personal hell. 

All was settling until Annie tapped her shoulder, the blonde pointed at the popcorn, asking for some. Mikasa shrugged, obliging to let Annie’s hand dig in the obnoxiously big bucket. 

Her hands are pretty. Mikasa blushed harder.

Eventually, the movie started, yet Mikasa had never stopped being hyper-aware of Annie’s every move. Ackerman couldn’t help but think she looked ethereal in the dim light, the curve of her nose and soft lips had never looked so inviting. Mikasa’s mind wandered to the thought of Annie in the mornings, messy hair and sleepy eyes. The ballet dancer was positive she’d cook breakfast for her every day, but the question is what would she like. 

I really need to brush up on my breakfast skills then, Mikasa pondered.

The movie droned on, some sloppy romance, exactly something Sasha and Connie would pick. Mikasa punched Sasha’s shoulder at the sight of the movie love interest, Sasha rubbed the spot that’d been punched and giggled. Damn Braus. 

Mikasa tentatively laid her hand on the armrest she and Annie shared, not paying attention to the movie due to the rush in her ears. She caught the blonde next to her steal a glance at her lone hand, all Annie did was nestle more into her seat, arms crossed.

Fuck, am I fucking this up? Am I going to walk in shame back to Armin’s? Mikasa worried, beginning to sweat in her hoodie. Fuck fuck fuck, did I put on deoderant? Oh god, what if I smell? 

MIkasa silently prayed this forced date would end in something other than once-sided pining, anything. 

-

Annie glanced at Mikasa’s hand, had she put it there on purpose? Was this an inviatation? 

Annie mentally cursed herself for her void social skills, she’ll have to interrogate Jean about this some time, he always seems to know what to do.

So far, Annie had succeeded in nothing but being her usual, off-putting self. She was annoyed Sasha had set them up, yeah, but Mikasa seemed a hell of a lot more composed than her. Annie enjoyed being in control of situations, but being in an unfamiliar situation like this kicked her fight or flight instincts. 

Maybe she was a coward, Annie didn’t really care. She knew she was selfish, but something about Mikasa made her suddenly self aware, she hated worrying so much about the way she acted. Both Ackerman and Leonhart had stone cold composure, it wasn’t often they bonded with anyone else. 

The movie droned on to some stupid heartfelt monologue, Annie rolled her eyes and slumped on the armrest farthest from Mikasa. Sasha and Connie’s annoying giggles were loud enough for her to hear, Annie grabbed a piece of popcorn and threw it at them. This was a hellish situation. She didn’t know how to feel about Mikasa, she craved and also hated her attention, discerning feelings had been hard enough all her life, it’s not like she’d become in tune with herself overnight. 

Annie was aware of Mikasa’s movements, sneaking glances every so often. Mikasa looked nice in the dim lighting, maybe even a little beautiful. Her stormy eyes reflected the movie in front of them perfectly, her hair framed her face just right, fuck, the girl even yawned cute. 

Annie didn’t know what she was thinking so much shit about the girl, she recognized it as weakness within herself and wanted to stomp it out, but she also wanted to feel more of it. The nervous flutter in her chest became increasingly straining to ignore. Annie hated when emotions couldn’t be snuffed out at her will.

It felt like a controlled flame on a gas stove had started a house fire, and there was nothing to do then except the fate of the heat. 

Annie kept in check with her face and body language, leaning as far away from Mikasa as possible, not wanting Ackerman to get any ideas that were out of the blonde’s control. 

The movie was boring as hell, Annie found little pleasure in stupid romantic comedies, the movie only piqued her interest when she heard Mikasa’s soft laugh at the screen. 

Mikasa seemed to have good enough judgment, although Annie found it stupid to trust someone you barely know. Something about Mikasa was so magnetic, and Annie couldn’t tell if they were opposite or similar poles. She didn’t know whether to be attracted or repulsed. 

New feelings like this made her nauseous, Annie hated not being in control. 

The kiss scene made her want to throw up in the nearest trash can, what sap would like this? After the swelling music died down from the kiss,Annie realized this ridiculous setup would be for nothing if her and Mikasa ignored each other the whole time. An idea came to light, she figured her new plan could work. Things have been exceedingly boring anyways. 

Annie gathered her pride and leaned over, she felt Mikasa tense and relax from the close vicinity, Leonhart found it kind of adorable, much to her dismay. 

“Pretty boring fucking movie, huh?” Annie joked, she felt a sense of warmth rush to her chest when Mikasa laughed. Ackerman didn’t hate her, not that Annie cared.

Well, maybe she did.

Mikasa met Annie’s eyes, the blonde felt her cheeks pinken slightly, Ackerman’s damn eyes got her everytime.

“Yeah, pretty stupid” Mikasa said, seemingly unbothered by Annie’s closeness. Leonhart liked that she didn’t seem off-put by her critical nature, everyone else seemed to be. 

They stole a few more moments, face to face in the theatre, staring eachother down as if one owed the other money. Annie eventually deemed Mikasa interesting, deciding she had to make the next move. 

“Here, Mikasa, follow me.” Annie promptly got up, ignoring Sasha’s I-told-you-so stare as she made her way down the row, Mikasa towing closely behind. 

God, Annie hoped Ackerman knew how to navigate a conversation, because she sure as hell didn’t.

-

Mikasa’s heart hitched even more at Annie saying her name, she even used the correct japanese pronunciation, it didn’t help the state of her burning ears, either. 

Mikasa hoped she didn’t look like an idiot, shuffling awkwardly after Annie. She didn’t know what their few moments so close meant, she couldn’t analyze Annie at all, it bothered and intruigued her. 

The thought of Annie leading her to a muder location crossed Mikasa’s mind as they stepped out into the brisk air, but she would be fine if that was the case. Any attention from Annie felt like good attention. 

Mikasa shivered in the cold air, leaning up against the movie theater wall with Annie. The blonde seemed unaffected, looking out onto the highway. The lights reflected beautifully from her blue eyes, Mikasa felt like she could give someone hypothermia from that stare. She loved it.

The wind was whipping through Annie’s bangs, the cold leavng her nose slightly pink. The darkness of the night concealed Mikasa’s glances at the blonde, she couldn’t get enough of her. 

The silence was somewhat comfortable, as they both leaned up against the wall, the cold wind seemed to fill in any silence the two created. It was nice, a pleasent change from the stuffy movie theatre. 

Eventually, Annie’s strong voice stole Mikasa from her trance, she’d been staring at Annie, but the blonde didn’t seem to mind, that is if she’d noticed. 

“I can’t believe Sasha and Connie pulled this shit off” Annie laughed, meeting Mikasa’s eyes head on. 

Mikasa spluttered after a response, she didn’t want Annie to pick up on her nervousness. 

“I know, they’re so getting their asses beat when they drop me off” Ackerman joked back, proud she got a chuckle from Leonhart in response. 

More beats of silence passed, Mikasa observed the way Annie seemed entranced by the highway lights again. Eventully they locked eyes. Mikasa’s nerves screamed at her cold stare, Annie seemed expectant of something, but there was no way Ackerman could form a coherent thought like this. 

Was it normal for friends to get caught in entrancing gazes like this? Both of the girls had no idea. 

Annie leaned in, and so did Mikasa, all they could do was mimic each other’s movements, and Annie crept closer as Mikasa leaned down. 

Annie was now looking up at Mikasa, who’s neck was sloped to meet the shorter girl. Their noses touched, Annie looked up, eyes critical once again, and Mikasa loved it. 

A few more moments beat by before either said a word, they were locked close, each afraid to startle away the other. 

“Your nose is cold.” Annie stated, Mikasa giggled slightly and kept her position, Leonhart seemed slightly amused now. The blonde pulled away, taking off her layered denim jacket in a swift movement and handed it to Mikasa, the distance between the two still null. 

Mikasa couldn’t possibly refuse, no matter how much she wanted to. What could this denim jacket be but a peace offering. She smiled a bit in thanks and swung it on, the piece of fabric was still warm from Annie’s body heat, she stuffed her hands in the pockets, savoring the newfound smell of pine.

Annie smelled like pine, noted. 

Annie returned to her stance, facing the highway, Mikasa took this as a sign to resume to normal as well, although a little closer to Annie this time. 

The two eventually got tired of standing, Annie gestured for Mikasa to sit on the cement next to her. 

This was much more prefered to over-thinking in a movie theatre. 

The cold seemed to wipe away any worries, leaving both of the highschoolers a clean slate. 

Eventually, Annie scooted closer, just as she did at Jean's. Mikasa accepted the blonde's gentle nudge to hold her hand, and they sat there, silent except for the electrical currents created by the touch. Mikasa squeezed on Annie’s hand, not allowing any subtle move to scare her off. 

To Mikasa’s surprise, Annie squeezed back. 

-

“Sasha, don’t you dare bother them! They could be making out for all we know!” Connie hissed at Sasha, rapid whispering in the movie theatre. It had now been over 30 minutes since the two ‘lovebirds’ took their leave, and Sasha was anxious to figure out where they’d gone off to. 

Sasha swatted away Connie’s insistent waving hand in front of her and stuck out her tongue at him. He was right, after all. Annie and Mikasa were like timid squirrels in the face of affection, so it was better her presence didn’t send them running up the tree. 

Sasha found herself snorting at the image of little squirrel Annie, a curious little creature with a blonde wig, then made herself outright laugh when she conjured up squirrel Mikasa, a little guy with a tiny red scarf and pretty black hair.

Eventually, someone shushed them, apparently laughing about squirrelified versions of your friends was too obnoxious for everyone else. 

Sasha rolled her eyes and grabbed Connie’s hand, he of course obliged, huffing as they dashed out of the dark room. 

“Sashaa,” He complained, knowing if their friends were caught doing anything, the chances of reuniting them would be slim.

“I know Connie I know! I just want to see, alright!” Sasha laughed back, walking fast through the hallways of movie theatre doors. 

For someone who was widely trusted with secrets, Sasha sure was nosy. But she wasn’t considered trusted for nothing. Braus’ gentle nature always took over before she pried too much. 

Eventually, Sasha stopped Connie dead in his tracks, he was about to complain in protest until he caught the sight of a back of a blonde head leaning against a dark-haired shoulder. 

No way, they actually pulled this off. 

Sasha giggled and jumped at the sight of Annie and Mikasa snuggled up outside, their backs against the glass windows surrounding the entrance to the movie building. Connie carted Sasha off before she made too much of a scene. The two agreed they'd wait a few minutes before walking out the theatre, they would pretend not to see Annie and Mikasa, and walk to the car before calling the pair to join them.

Sasha excitedly explained her squirrel Annie and Mikasa thoughts while they waited in random arcade seats. The two were far too distracted by their new pair to play any games. Connie laughed his ass off at the idea of a little squirrel in a black wig and red scarf, Sasha boasted her chest at the landed joke. 

Around 10 minutes passed, and Sasha ran out of the movie theatre while calling after Connie, careful to not turn her head to the pair sitting outside. Connie ran after her, careful not to do the same, they both giggled excitedly as Sasha’s phone rang for Annie. 

Springer and Braus turned the car heater off to hear Annie’s voice over the phone. 

“What.” She said, a hint of annoyance in her voice. 

“We’re in the car waiting for you two!! Get your asses out here before we freeze to death!” Sasha yelled back into the phone, far louder than she needed to. 

A quick “Hm?” Came from the other line, undoubtedly Mikasa’s voice. Connie slapped a hand over his mouth in an attempt to not give away the speakerphone status. Annie grumbled and hung up, the pair promptly burst into laughter. Sasha wiped imaginary tears from her eyes at their new couple project.

God, Braus thought between her laughs, this is the gift that just keeps on giving.

-

Mikasa froze at the sight of Sasha and Connie running off to the parking lot. Annie hadn’t seemed to notice, since she was shielding from the door by herwon body. Mikasa thought it was a blessing Brause and Springer hadn’t noticed the pair, she knew they would never hear the end of it. 

Ackerman decided to do nothing, Annie’s warmth in her hand and on her shoulder was for more preferable to anything else, Sasha would figure something out eventually anyways. 

Annie and Mikasa had been sitting like this for maybe 20 minutes now, the silence never grew to be anything but comfortable. Annie rubbed small circles on the back of Mikasa’s graceful hands, which only deepened her blush. The taller girl was grateful she wasn’t facing Annie, there was no denying the blonde would find some satisfaction in Mikasa’s reddened face. 

Their peace was interrupted by a shrill ring, Annie’s phone. She answered the call without loosening her grip on Mikasa’s hand, the dark haired girl smiled in satisfaction.

Annie seemed especially annoyed at this call, only eliciting a short response to the other end. Mikasa tilted her head at the blonde, letting out a soft “Hm?” Leonhart quirked her lips upward at Ackerman, almost an expression of fondness.

Annie hung up the phone and gently parted her hand from Mikasa’s. The taller girl felt immediately cold at the lack of body heat, but she just snuggled into Annie’s denim jacket and sprung up. She offered Annie ahand in getting up, but the blonde ignored it and stood up on her own. 

“The idiots are waiting for us.” Annie said, hardly masking her amusement, the fondness stuck to her words like honey. 

Mikasa nodded, and they both set off for Sasha’s shitty car. Neither dared to say a thing, the physical affection was casual, from what Mikasa could deduce, although confiding in Armin later c ouldn’t hurt. Mikasa’s head spinned from the new events, she felt like curling up in her own bed, some time alone sounded amazing.

Before the pair got into the car, Annie touched Mikasa’s shoulder, ice and storm met when they locked eyes.

“Just between us?” The blonde proposed, one eyebrow raised. 

Mikasa nodded quietly, managing a decent wink at Annie, which made her redden a bit. 

They got into the backseat in unison, Annie kicked the back of Sasha’s seat when she caught her giggling, Mikasa would truly never hear the end of this. 

The drive home was filled with Connie’s half-decent music blaring through the aux, Mikasa couldn’t help but laugh a bit as she leaned against the window, her breath fogging up the glass. Even though it was another Sasha Connie setup, it had fared well. Maybe the group didn’t give the duo as much credit as they deserved. 

Annie’s house was first to Armin’s, Mikasa noted where the blonde lived in her mind. It was surprisingly close to her own home, she wondered how they hadn’t run into each other before. 

Annie walked out without saying a word, before she could get far to her house, Mikasa rolled down her window. 

“Jacket?” Ackerman asked. 

Annie shrugged, “Keep it, and I’ll see you on monday, Ackerman.” The blonde didn’t waste time disappearing through her front door.

Her words rattled through Mikasa’s mind, she absentmindedly hugged Annie’s denim jacket closer around her. Damn, Sasha, you’ve gotta stop being so good at matchmaking.

Once Sasha waved her goodbyes, shouting loud enough to wake the whole neighborhood, Connie blasted up the music and the duo set on their way. Mikasa watched their car fade into the road, she thought how really struck gold with her few frieds.

When she walked into the Arlert residence, Eren and Armin were practically slobbering like dogs looking for details about the setup date, she should’ve expected Sasha to alert everyone about the ambush. Mikasa denied everything and gave the boys a glare, they shut up, but only through exchanging excited glances. 

Damn, how many things has Braus gotten past her before?

Armin handed Mikasa’s packed bag, a winning smile endeared on his face. Of course he packed her things for her, Carla would be expecting the siblings back soon. In fact, they were running late. 

“Go you two!!” Armin insisted, carting the Jaeger siblings out the door. Eren gave Armin a quick tight hug, mumbling in his ear about seeing him at school tomorrow. Armin blushed over Eren’s shoulder at a curious Mikasa, the boys were getting closer, suspicion was now within reason. 

“I’ll see you guys tomorrow, seriously!” Armin laughed, breathless from Eren’s hug.

Eren let out a little ‘Bye, Armin!’ Before the door closed in the siblings faces. Eren sighed dreamily and set off to his home. Mikasa caught up to him and gave her brother a suspecting nudge, Eren covered his blush and smiled.

“Shut up, Mika!” He said, embarrassed. Clearly something happened within the few hours she was gone. As his sister, prying was Mikasa’s number one job, at least as far as she was concerned. 

Mikasa shot Eren a knowing look and he sighed, they both slowed to a casual walk despite the time being no earlier than 10. Mika enjoyed these little moments with her brother, she thought it drew them closer. 

“So.. Um..” Eren stumbled a bit over his words, his sister gave him time to figure out what to say, she understood the feeling. 

Jaeger took a deep breath, his emerald eyes still adjusting in the dark of the night. 

“Me and Armin..” His voice trailed off. 

“We kissed, kind of a lot.” 

There was a moment of silence, Mikasa couldn’t really say she was surprised. Their relationship was a long time awaited, she was mostly happy for Armin, who was undoubtedly over the moon. 

Mikasa nodded in approval. “Finally, I honestly thought you two would never get around to it”

Eren looked abashed, trying to come up with a response through his flustered laughs, but he knew she was right.

“I’d.. finally realized I was wasting time with Jean, and the perfect boy was right in front of me” 

Sappy. Cute, but sappy. 

Mikasa’s heart panged with longing, she shoved the feeling away and slung an arm around her brother, she knew how much a touch of support could mean to him. He smiled sheepishly back at his sister and grinned. 

“Nice jacket” He smiled. He took a deep breath, “race you back home!” Eren shot off, running as fast as his feet would take him. 

Mikasa rolled her eyes and easily caught up, her long strides hitting the concrete were steady and consistent, she left Eren in the dust and raced up the front steps to their house. Eren was barely running by the time he made it, just breathlessly making long strides, Mikasa laughed at the sight. 

When they entered the house, intense auburn eyes met the siblings, probably burning a hole in the wall behind the. Carla had definitely been waiting a few hours for the siblings now. 

“If Armin hadn’t texted me you two were with him.. You both would be barred home for a week.”

Eren made the mistake of snorting at Carla, She narrowed her eyes at him and took his ear. Mikasa always found it so endearing how… Motherly Carla could be. She reminded Mikasa of her own mother, they both had the same okaa-like demeanor. This was enough for Mikasa, she was still loved, and she will always have a family.

Carla sent the siblings for sleep, making sure to hug and kiss both on the forehead before yelling up after them to get a decent sleep. Eren and Mikasa giggled for a moment about the apparent scolding before going into their separate rooms. Mikasa felt all fuzzy inside from the day, it had proven to be annoyingly good. 

Mikasa blushed and got into some sleep clothes, swearing to shower after practice tomorrow. The one item she could not shrug off was Annie’s denim jacket. The pine scent mixed slightly of honey made the dormant butterflies in her stomach come to life. Annie had let her keep the jacket for the night for a reason, there has to be a reason.

Mikasa hugged her ladybug pillow pet (a childhood relic) closer, keeping Annie’s jacket near her nose. Her senses were filled with warmth, honey dripping from a spoon on a lazy summer afternoon, dreams of a cottage Mikasa had never seen before took over her consciousness.

-

Annie stared at her ceiling, it couldn’t be far past one in the morning, yet she couldn’t find sleep, even though she craved it.

Leonhart desperately wanted to rest, she normally didn’t have dreams, sleep was a sweet escape to exist without truly existing. When Annie was little, her dad told her sleeping was the easiest way to time travel, since you can blink and open your eyes for it to be several hours later. Little Annie found this fascinating, bedtime was always her favorite time of the day.

Older now, and in a much more difficult position with her father, Annie grit her teeth at the bittersweet memories. A part of her wished she’d forgotten, so it would be easier to blame her father for everything that was his fault. He didn’t remember, so why did she bother? 

Annie’s internal dialogue called her weak for remembering, for wanting to preserve those memories in a delicate glass case. Her favorite movie growing up had been Beauty and the Beast. Her mother used to call her Belle, when Annie used to twist and twirl in her replica yellow dress. Her mom used to sing the french translation of all her favorite songs, feeding into her fantasy of falling in love with a beast, uncovering his true heart.

When Annie’s father got angry, she used to think of the beast, hoping that her father would soften again at the touch of love. He never did. Bitterness grew, and Annie couldn’t help but think she’s shattered the glass case with the enchanted rose.

Annie huffed and turned on her back, studying the cracks and the shitty paint job around her room. This house was agonizing to be in, the blonde was convinced that she’d be happy anywhere but here. Being emotional was overwhelming already, and her father looming over her like a sandbag at the top of a theatre stage only worsened the dread in her heart. 

When she closed her cold eyes, a big house filled with talking and singing furniture invited her, Annie fell into the dream, losing consciousness before the impact could come.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this chapter was exceedingly difficult to write, so i hope it turned out well! any feedback is appreciated, tell me your thoughts!


	6. nobody likes a bully, unless you need someone to beat up

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> trigger warning for homophobic slurs and abuse

Oh my god, please shut up. 

Annie’s blaring alarm made her ears buzz in discontent, the damn thing wouldn’t turn off. It had done it’s job already for fuck’s sake. Whenever she had dreams, they always made her feel terribly tired.

Annie lazily got out of bed, slowly making her way towards the bathroom with her eyes half closed. School sounded like hell right now, she’d have to make sure to pick up an energy drink on the way. 

Looking in the mirror, she felt disgusting. Her skin was crawling, it felt like ants marched down her arms, down her back and around her legs. She splashed her face with ice cold water, and looked in the mirror. 

Her eyes were puffy, lips chapped, hair was knotted in all sorts of ways, the blonde didn’t usually care about her appearance, but man, she felt like shit. 

Annie got ready quickly, not really feeling like a lecture from the hallway monitor Hannh about being late. She puroused her pantry until finding some crackers, figuring she’d snack on them on the walk to school. On a whim, Annie made quick time to make some tea, putting it in thermos before shutting her front door harshly, and enduring the cold walk to school. Still, her fathers car did not plaugue the driveway, Annie wondered where the hell that man could be. 

Her mind was mostly empty, walking to the miserable school. She thought of Mikasa, the thought fleeting, but nice. Ahe thought of how they shared a small warmth outside the movie theatre, how Leonhart had purposefully gotten close to an Ackerman. How their hands interlocked, how Mikasa was practically a human heater, even though the girl was cold herself. 

Annie sighed as she spotted Jean’s car in the school parking lot, Mikasa was probably in that car, did she still have Annie’s denim jacket?

Her question was answered when a blot of jet black hair could be spotted in the courtyard, between the huge school buildings. She sat on top of a table, curled up, staring off into the distance all mysterious-like. Annie rolled her eyes, she knew the girl was probably emotionally stunted, but her broodingness was kind of funny if you weren’t scared of it first. 

Annie contemplated walking over to her, but Mikasa was surrounded by Eren and Armin’s animated talking, and Connie and Sasha’s badgering. The situation looked like an overwhelming mess to Annie, so maybe they could talk some other time. 

Relationships deeply perplex Annie, not that she didn’t understand how to commit, she just didn’t know how her partner ever felt. Other people with their quirks and habits annoy Annie already, having a partner would only amplify her need to be alone.

Leonhart wondered how long it’ll be until Mikasa hates her. Everyone finds Annie annoying to some degree. After all, she isn’t hurt or shocked, going out of her way to be rude or disagreeable was Annie’s way of interacting with the world. Annie absentmindedly thought of being rude to Mikasa, making Ackerman hate her to the point where they can’t stand each other. 

It sounded preferable, Annie could stand being hated by another person. But something about the thought of Mikasa in someone else's jacket made her stomach lurch. The blonde began to wonder whether she wanted to push Mikasa away because she was scared, or because she knew deep down it would end up better for the both of them. 

-

Mikasa liked that Annie wasn’t sensitive. Although she didn’t understand the blonde, she did understand how to interact with her. Those two could be the same thing if you squint hard enough. 

Mikasa sported the oversized light denim jacket, it looked good on her, but she wasn’t sure if it actually did or just the fact it belonged to Annie made it all the better. Sasha giggled at their usual morning table, spotting the jacket from a mile away. Mikasa felt so internally tired, she wanted to sleep the day away so desperately. Ballet practice was tonight, her head pounded just thinking of it. Maybe she could oversee Historia’s choreography or something, Reiss did usually take it easy on Ackerman anyways. 

They had a recital this week, practice would be from right after school to around 9PM. Mikasa enjoyed the long weekend, their teacher, Levi, always harped on about how a break was important or else burnout was inevitable. 

The man was a mystery, and also Mikasa’s cousin? It was still undisputed, and Levi said there's no difference if it’s true, so Mikasa could assume whatever she wanted. She’s also sure that he and Jean’s gym owner, Erwin, were together. Mikasa had once seen Levi’s small figure climb into a car with the giant blonde. She thought they would make a good team. Maybe a decent couple. 

Historia’s warm vanilla scent wafted into Mikasa’s nose, snapping her out of her deep train of thought. 

Reiss was caring, almost annoyingly so, and Mikasa was sure she was going to hell for thinking anything ill of the charitous girl. Historia sat down next to her, seemingly dolled up with no makeup, just glossy lips that faded throughout the day from her partner’s kisses. Mikasa managed a small smirk, she hoped the conversation wouldn’t require too much energy. 

“Peer review later at practice, ‘Kasa?” The blonde had read her mind. Mikasa made a metal note to not underestimate Historia’s perception skills in the future. 

“You read my mind, Historia” Mikasa mumbled, struggling with meeting those bright blue eyes. It had become clear in her mind she preferred Annie’s cold blue rather than Historia’s swallowing sky. The blonde smiled and walked off to go find someone, probably Ymir. 

Mikasa was tired, the bustling atmosphere around her grew restless, the bustling quite annoying. She thought back to the movie theatre, to Annie. Mikasa absentmindedly wrapped the denim jacket around her, begging for the bell to ring so the day could start grinding along slowly.

The bell rang, a sharp ding that never failed to make Ackerman flinch, she shuffled up and slightly rolled her eyes at the sight of Eren’s hand wrapped around Armin’s waste, her brother and best friend disappearing in the crowd of teenagers. 

Mikasa turned up the music in her hears and pretended to walk along nonchalantly, mostly, she just wanted to spot Annie. It didn’t take long to see a tall head of shiny black hair, jutting out from the sea of shorter people. Mikasa figured Betholdt and Annie walk together, the blondes hands were stuffed in her hoodie, as usual, and Bertholdt was silent as well. Though he seemed more insecure than his intimidating friend.

Mikasa wondered if Annie would even consider her and Bertholdt friends, but she knew that the two boys from the blonde’s hometown were most likely the closest thing Leonhart had to friends. Other than Sasha.. But Sasha was everyone’s friend, Mikasa didn’t think too much of it. 

Annie didn’t look back. Obviously she didn’t. Mikasa knew that earning Annie’s trust was going to take time, and she swore to herself she would eventually win her over.

-

Stares. Eren hadn’t been accepting so many stares. Him and his best friend have always been affectionate in public, but holding hands through the hallways felt all the more daunting. Eyes glued to their interlocked hands as they walked by. What were they thinking? Was this really what the real world will offer for him and his newfound boyfriend? 

Armin laughed nervously, he felt it too. Eren gave one last squeeze before letting go of Armin’s fragile hand. It would be safter at lunch, to display their affections. Both boys felt bound at the throat by a drought, swallowing became easier as their hands unlocked and eyes reverted back to their destinations. Eren had a feeling, an instinct bubbling up in his chest, something was going to happen, soon. The school had a charged tension, and Jaegar felt like the center of it all. 

He knows what anxiety felt like, and it certainly wasn’t this nauseating, impending feeling. Armin nudged him, giving him a concerning head-tilt while continuing to turn a sharp corner towards their next class. Eren mustered the best reassuring nod he could, Armin knew something was up, but decided not to press too hard for details. 

Sometime’s it was easy to forget their own little world wasn’t the only world. Just because their whole friend group was lgbt, didn’t mean the rest of the school was. Eren rubbed his eyes tiredly and slumped down in his frst period seat. He convinced this urgent feeling was a result of the anxiety from basically coming out, and he decided he needs to think more outwardly, for his and Armin’s sake. 

-

Annie kept her head low in class. Nothing opposed from the usual, Reiner and Bertholdt were preoccupied with last minute homework, and Annie couldn’t find it in her to even care what she had missed. School was far too unimportant, and she honestly felt so much more relived with the heavy weight of her grades gone now that she took to liberty to ghost an entire soccer team. It just didn’t matter, Annie had lost any and all motivation. 

While filling out a tic-tac-toe match she’s been having with a stranger through writing on her assigned desk, a name perked her attention, although she did her best to not show it. 

Floch was going on about Jaeger.. Annie knew enough that he was Mikasa’s brother. Annie hated the fact that anything about Mikasa caught her eye, but she’d seen Armin and Eren’s affections today, and Floch wasn’t the kind of person that would be happy about the two. Whether that was because of his blatant homophobia or obsession with Eren, it was worrying either way.

Annie furrowed her eyebrows a bit as she tuned in, scribbling the X in the grid onto the table. Floch and Marlowe were laughing loudly at a comment made about Armin being a twink, they erupted in laughter once again when Floch added that the blonde probably liked to cross-dress in his free time. Annie’s fist clenched around her pencil, otherwise she remained perfectly calm.

Leonheart wasn’t usually one to intervene when bullying occurred, it was kind of just how things were at their town high school. Annie found herself to be rude too- and she hated interacting with people, much less meddling in their business. 

But this was different , Armin’s friend group tended to be fiercely protective of his security and identity, and Annie finally understood why. She wasn’t even a part of their group, she usually sat alone at lunch. Hell, it was still a coinciednce she went to the weekend sleepover with the rest of them. The movie theatre was just another ploy from Sasha, too. 

Annie felt the need to knock some sense into Floch. Being the dumbass he is, a beating probably wouldn’t drill it into his head enough to not be such a dick. Reiner coughed loudly from behind the both of them, throwing a mean glare in their direction. The two boys got the memo, Reiner could beat them up in an instant, and it wasn’t the best idea to get on the Captain of the football team's bad side. 

She spotted Connie, up in the front of the class, his back was tense and his hand wrapped around the edge of the desk to the point of his knuckles whitening. He’d been listening too, Annie couldn’t tell whether he was scared or mad, but judging by his outgoing character, she figured he’d give Floch and Marlowe a moderate smackdown if required. 

Annie let out a breath she didn’t know she was holding when the boys finally shut the fuck up. A small broil of annoyance and rage bubbled up in her, she decided to save it for later. 

She didn’t understand most people and their habits, but she knew enough to never believe someone like Floch would suddenly act right. 

-

Mikasa had 3rd period with Armin, she decided she needed a break from overthinking every single scenario that could go on with Annie by listening to Armin talk quietly about whatever was on his mind. 

When he popped in, much later towards the late bell than usual, he looked disheveled. His pale cheeks were tinged with red and the slight stain of tears. He quickly ducked his head into his seat, not feeling up to explaining to Mikasa. 

She knew what had happened when he got like this, they practically knew everything about each other. 

Someone had put their hands on him, she knew it. The scrape on his chin gave it all away, after the teacher had stopped drabbling on, and allowed them for collaborative work, Mikasa took the first chance she got. She leaned over, Armin would hate for more attention drawn to him right now, so she also pretended to point at a problem on their sheet as if she were asking a question. 

“Armin, what happened?” Mikasa made her voice as soft as possible, trying to get concern to stick to her words, like Armin always did effortlessly. 

He sniffled a bit, his bright blue eyes peeking from above his arm to meet hers, she raised her eyebrows a bit, and Armin sat up to slump against the back of his chair, his nose was bright red, it would almost be adorable if Mikasa hadn’t spotted his split lip, along with his other scrapes on his chin and cheek. 

Mikasa huffed and tried to put a gentle hand on top of Armin’s, as a friends reassurance. Eren was always around to protect him at school, it had been almsot a year since Armin had been bullied like this. Mikasa felt filled with rage, and she became almost nauseas at the thought of someone treating her best friend like that. 

Armin seemed to notice, and he sniffled at his nose and straightened immediately, putting on a small smile for Mikasa. He knew how she felt, and she knew Arlert hated confrontation. 

Mikasa knew what was up next, a lie. 

“Nothing, ‘Kasa, I slipped when I was taking a break for some fresh air!” Armin cringed at the weakness of his own voice, it cracked when he tried to force an optimistic tone. There was no way Mikasa would buy that. 

But to his mercy, she decided not to push more. Armin let out a relieved sigh when she furrowed her eyebrows at him and nodded, he didn’t feel like watching her confront his bullies after school. Floch had gotten stronger, and although Mikasa could always take care of herself, Armin would never forgive himself if his best friend got hurt at his expense. 

Mikasa planned to ask him later, or let him come to her. She knew if he pushed her for details about anything right now, she’d become overwhelmed. She figured he would have the same reaction.

Mikasa decided to stick around Armin, anybody who would dare to tease him with her around would be asking for a death wish. Armin sighed, a tone of frustration in his sigh.

“Mikasa. You can’t protect me all the time, they’ll never stop if you do. They’ll just go back to bullying me when you aren’t around” Armin was patient with his words, speaking them carefully so as to not set off his friend.

Damn Armin, she knew growing up with the blonde boy that he could convince anyone in or out of anything. He seemed harmless, but the boy really could be manipulative. Mikasa sensed an edge in sincerity in his voice, and she figured being followed by two hot-headed siblings all the time didn’t exactly do wonders for his ego.

Mikasa sighed stubbornly and nodded, returning her eyes to the lesson ahead. A buzzing in the back of her head insisted she hunt down Floch, but maybe it was better to just wait and listen. Mikasa would be overjoyed if Floch was stupid enough to start anything with her directly. 

Armin had seemed to calm down, Mikasa made sure to stay within earshot in case he wanted to let her know anything, no more questions were necessary. Mikasa was confident in her ability to protect Armin and keep Eren from getting too violent, it was kind of ironic, their relationship. One was so passive you might not realize he’s there, yet the other is like a bright star burning out, ready to set off a black hole at any time. 

Maybe opposites attract, or in Annie and Mikasa’s case, perhaps similar poles could find a way after all. 

-

Annie eyed Floch as they passed in the hall, 4th period was coming, which meant lunch would follow soon after. She would prefer to sit alone, being migrated into Mikasa’s friendgroup so soon sounds.. annoying. Overwhelming. 

Since Annie had stepped a tentative foot into their circle, she’s noticing things she hasn’t before. Connie visibly tenses whenever someone looks at him weird, Armin actually isn’t a know-it-all, like she had thought before. He’s just introspective. And Jean tended to be too caring for his own good. She was surprised he and Marco didn’t do charity work on the weekends with how much they checked in with their friends. 

Annie knew she could never be like that, it made her just shiver thinking of taking on so many responsibilities. Nobody relied on her, so she relied on nobody. Although it tended to get lonely, Annie knew nothing could compare to the satisfaction of being truly independent.

To her dismay, Floch shared 4th period with Leonhart as well, she felt like the guy was everywhere today. Normally she just scrolled on twitter for the whole period in the back of the class, occasionally switching between the playlists blasting in her ears, but Floch and Franz apparently had set out to ruin her plans. 

Snickers. Over a phone or something. Apparently whoever they decided to harass today was just too hilarious to live just in their memories. Annie wished they would shut the fuck up, she was practically counting down the seconds to the lunch bell. 

When it finally rang, she slung her grey backpack over her shoulder as quickly as possible, making a beeline to the lonesome lunch table she enjoyed so much. Although, when making the sharp turn out of the door and into the hallway, she caught something she wished she didn’t hear. 

“Better show this one to Jaegar” Floch’s big mouth barked through ugly laughs. 

Annie wished she could shrug it off as some stupid joke, but a chill cemented itself into the back of her neck. She hoped it was nothing, but,

Annie’s instincts were never wrong.

-

Safety, finally some solace was offered in Eren’s warm arms as the blonde approached the lunch table. He did his best to not seem shaken up, no one but Mikasa needed to know about earlier. 

Floch was an asshole, but there’s no way he would post what he had captured. Armin couldn’t bear to think of that reality. His worries were hushed away as he sat at the group's lunch table, sinking into Eren’s arms more than sitting on the actual table seat. Mikasa showed up like a ghost next to the two, and Sasha slammed into the table in an attempt to beat Connie in a race. 

“Ough, that one hurt!” The brunette giggled, situating herself before sitting down.

Connie came over a few moments later, panting as he held his head in defeat. Sasha gave him a big bright smile, flaunting her win. Armin giggled as the two bickered a bit, he was glad Sasha didn’t make a huge spectacle out of him and Eren. He was craving some normalcy after the long day. 

Soon, everyone was settled down. Reiner had decided to sit with the group today, strange, but not a bad change. He seemed to be the big brother that they had been missing, Armin wondered if Annie and Bertholdt would ever want to join the group. The more, the merrier, right?

Armin blinked away his thoughts as Eren started playing with his hair. He enjoyed the soothing touch and leaned more into him. His boyfriend felt so strong, it was so easy for the horrors of today to wash down the drain, and let Eren’s warmth help him start anew. 

The table was animated with a nice kind of energy, side conversations and heated debates about stupid topics floated around. Armin felt safe, like nothing could hurt him, in this little world with his friends, and more importantly— Eren. 

Just to his luck, the conversation died suddenly. Armin peeked an eye open and saw everybody staring at a point somewhere above Eren’s head. He felt his boyfriend tense. Armin wasn’t ready to let go of this moment, whatever had arisen, he didn’t want to face it. He just clung Eren’s arm tighter until he let his boyfriend go. He couldn’t hide forever. 

Well, upon seeing Floch’s shit eating grin towering over him, maybe that could be arranged.

-

Fuck, Mikasa thought. I’d been too focused on figuring out ways to get Floch alone. Now he was right behind Eren and Armin, staring down at them like owls hunt bugs in the night. Armin turned around, and stood to face Floch, who was without a doubt a head and a half taller than the short blonde. 

Armin looked brave, furrowing his eyebrows at his bully. Mikasa felt a surge of pride, and apprehnsion. He had never been so confrontational, under no circumstance was Armin Arlert going to get hurt, not with all of his friends protecting him. 

Armin’s voice was hushed, Mikasa was sure that only she and Eren could hear the harsh whispers. 

“Get the fuck away from me” His words were deliberate, no one had ever heard the sweet boys words charged with such venom. The coldness sent a chill down Mikasa’s spine. 

Floch froze up, so fast Mikasa wasn’t sure if she missed it or not. He was back to cockily smiling down at Armin, she wanted to punch on the tall redhead, to teach him to never come back here again. But something in Armin’s expression told her not to. He was proving in front of all his friends, that he could be brave too. 

Eren stood up as well, his chest was puffed out a bit in a protective manner, he forced himself in between Armin and Floch. At this point, the cafeteria had quieted, people were staring. Maybe expecting a fight, Mikasa didn’t know why it was any of their damn business. She spotted Annie further down, the blondes blue eyes cemented onto Floch. She could tell something would happen too.

The cafeteria held it’s collective breath, Eren shoved Floch, who had now been accompanied by his pathetic gaggle of bullies. Floch backed off, his hands held high in a mocking innocent tone. 

“Woah, Jaeger, calm down, no need to be so hostile.” Floch pulled out his phone, pulling something up, although no one could tell what. 

“Get the fuck away from him, or I swear to god I’ll kill you.” Eren hissed. Mikasa knew he didn't really mean that, but his tone was sure as hell convincing. Maybe there was a pinch of truth to his words.

Floch laughed, a dumb giggle that progressed into something manic and stupid. Armin looked terrified now, restorting to stand behind Eren. Nobody knew what Floch had, but judging by the smug looks the redheads group shared around, it couldn’t be good. 

Armin. Crying. One of the boys mocking pressed up against him in the back of the school. Armin on the ground, blurred pictures of his teary blue eyes looking up, more pictures of uncomfortable positions. Floch showed Eren each picture, still holding the phone up so the entire table could see. Mikasa’s blood boiled, Armin choked back a sob, and for a second, things passed so slowly yet happened so fast. 

Glass shattering on the ground. Eren stomped on Flochs phone as his stupid fucking face twisted in shock. 

“What, dumbass? You think I wouldn’t do it?” Eren landed one more menacing crack to the phone before kicking it away, it had been reduced to a useless piece of glass and plastic. 

Armin hated when they got violent, and his moment of bravery seemed to have been short lived. The blonde boy desperately looked back at the table, everyone seemed livid at Floch, but the embarrassment and shame was too much to handle. 

Mikasa saw a few delicate tears slip from his eyes, they locked gazes for just a second, then the blonde boy tried to squirm away from Eren’s protective grip. He wiggled himself out and began to walk away. Good, Mikasa thought, this should deescalate it a bit. 

“Watch where you’re going, faggot” One of Floch’s boys hissed, simultaneously sticking his foot out in Armin’s path. 

Before Mikasa could react, Armin landed in a hard thud on the floor, it looked painful to trip like that. Rage coursed through Mikasa, she helped Armin up immediately and glared at anyone who dared to look their way. 

“That’s it.” Eren hissed, he raised his arm high to swing at Floch, Mikasa spotted a flash of blonde come between them and in a second, Annie had come between the two. She punched Floch so hard he fell to the ground. She had stopped Eren’s swing, too. 

Standing stoically over the redhead, his black eye was already forming. Annie lifted her leg back, preparing another blow to Floch’s ribs.

-

Annie didn’t remember how she got over there, she knew the phone had been smashed, she’s been watching the whole ordeal intently. Armin fell. Eren raised his hand to deliver a blow to Floch, but it never came. 

It wasn’t that she’d because when she gained her vision back, her knuckles were bruised, swollen. The boys were groaning, Floch was bleeding from his nose on the floor, Franz was clenching his bruised cheek, someone else Annie didn’t recognize also lay around her, groaning with some pain around his neck. 

Pure adrenaline coursed through Annie’s veins, everyone’s eyes were on her, silent in shock. She didn’t care, this needed to happen. Someone needed to put them in their place. 

She walked over to Floch, who was groaning on the floor, clutching his stomach. Annie leaned down, it was impossible for him to escape the burning freeze of her gaze. 

“Know your place, Forster”.” Her voice was dripping with venom, like poisonous fruits growing in a meadow. 

The whole cafeteria was looking, Annie stared him down until he nodded, his nose swollen and eyes bruised.

A cold hand wrapped around Annie’s arm, she looked up to meet stern brown eyes, an expression that Hange usually didn’t sport. They looked gravely serious, a line Annie had never seen before locked between their furrowed eyebrows.

Hange nudged Leonhart with a little force to walk with them, probably to some office where Annie would probably get expelled.

She didn’t care, she couldn’t bring herself to care when Hange softened thier grip on her arm, when they kept glancing over with concern. 

The waiting room outside of the principal’s office wasn’t an unfamiliar place, but no matter how many times Annie had been in the same bland seat breathing stale air, she knew the room would never be comfortable.

Hange had dropped Annie off, promising to come by later to “talk” with her and the principal. Leonhart knew this was bullshit, Hange was probably going to say her goodbyes once the principal inevitably expelled her. What luck she had. 

Annie knew this was better than watching Eren get beat up and thrown in detention. She’d seen enough of his altercations to know he would’ve rained hell on Floch and those assholes. Annie knew Eren had a football scholarship set up for him, and that he’d also do anything to keep Armin safe. 

The more Annie thought of it, staring absently at the clock near the ceiling, the more she understood why she’d moved so quick to get in the way. She knew her grades were beyond saving, she refused to put in the effort in something she knew would never really benefit her. But Annie hated the idea of Eren losing his scholarship over something so trivial. Of course, in hindsight, it was Jaeger's life, but she didn’t want to watch the kid lose his future. Better her, who had zero future in school, than Eren, who needed to keep his goddamn GPA up or he'd be off the team.

Images of her father flashed around in her head, him sparring with her, a nine year old in the name of self defense, the kids laughing at her bruises, her father breaking plates over Annie’s crush on another girl being exposed, the weakness she felt from not being able to defend herself. 

It was all too much, so she let everything out on those assholes, while saving Eren’s ass in the process. Annie focused on the recollection, the blank slate when she had beaten them beginning to fill. 

Floch on the ground being kicked, her bloody knuckle contacting hard with Franz’s nose, punching, over and over again. Annie took a deep breath and forced it out of her head, what’s done is done, and there was no way in hell she’d regret it now. 

A principal's office? Really? The thought dawned on her she had no obligation to be here, no one on earth could force her. She could go home and ignore everyone else for at least a day.

The confrontation with Hange sounded awful anyways, icy eyes squinted as Annie contemplated how many days she could be gone. Her dad would find out sooner or later, but she couldn’t give a damn. It had been a while since her knuckles were so swollen. She relished the sting, pushing the door open to leave campus, the fresh air hit her face, like a sip of cold water after a mint.

The cold air wasn’t the only refreshing thing outside, a slight smile and grey eyes greeted Annie, Mikasa had stepped in front of the blonde as soon as she opened the door. 

Annie kept walking, but Mikasa kept up. She tried not to think about how it made her breath hitch seeing Ackerman in her jacket, but damn, it was cute.

The two walked in silence for a second, Annie wondered if the girl was going to stay silent for her whole walk, but Ackerman piped up after a few seconds. 

“Want me to walk you home?” Mikasa’s voice was nonchalant, apparently skipping class didn’t bother her as much as Annie assumed it would. 

Annie kept her eyes set ahead

“No, Mikasa, I’ll get home fine.” Annie kept her voice even and strong, heart beating faster at her prominent mention of Mikasa’s name. She wasn’t sure why she had said it, but Ackerman had a nice name, it felt right.

Mikasa shrugged beside her, slowing down just slightly enough for Annie to look over. The glance was quick, but their eye contact made it feel like time slowed down. 

“I want to say thank you, for earlier,” Mikasa said with a sharp breath in, Annie assumed she didn’t thank people too often. Annie noticed how Mikasa fiddled with the hem of her denim jacket, a sudden warmth spreading through her chest at the sight of it.

“Armin, you know, has problems with assholes like Floch, and Eren doesn’t need any more trouble with his scholarship”

Ah, so Annie was right. Mikasa had just thanked her so her brother didn’t seem like an idiot, not because she wants to spend time with Annie.

Leonhart would be lying if she said she wasn’t disappointed. A small part of her hoped Mikasa would take her somewhere, anywhere but home. Luckily though, Annie had no issue lying to herself.

“Yeah, Don’t mention it” Annie replied quickly, the urge to be alone seized her, and she wasn’t sure how long Mikasa was going to stick with her on the walk home. Annie felt the need to be rude, just anything to be alone. 

Something was shoved into her backpack, Annie feigned in the sudden contact, but grateful Mikasa hadn’t legitimately touched her. Ackerman gave her a small smile, one that made Annie’s heart stop. 

“Text me whenever, see you around” 

With that, Mikasa set off towards the opposite direction, to school. Annie felt stupid for feeling immediately more alone when MIkasa walked off.

Jesus, get it together, it’s not like you won't see her again, Leonhart. Annie scolded herself, emotional harmony and tolerance didn’t exist towards even her own feelings, seemingly enough. 

“You stealing my jacket, Ackerman?” Annie called back, a bit of a challenge layered in her shout. 

Mikasa turned around without stopping her forward pace, She shrugged overdramatically as she walked backwards, and flashed a small smile.

“Still feeling cold, I guess!” Mikasa shouted back and kept walking, Annie furrowed her eyebrows after her in slight amusement.

Before the blonde resumed her full pace back home, she remembered Mikasa put something in her bag. Annie slung one strap off and fished in the side pocket, there was a folded index card. She full stopped when she saw the neatly scrolled numbers along it. 

Mikasa gave her number to me, Annie thought. Holy shit. 

Annie certainly wasn’t giddy, but it provided a bit more peace of mind. Whatever they were was inching closer to the daunting territory of friends. It scared Annie again, but maybe this was worth seeing through. 

Annie winded down her favorite street, annoyed at how beautifully the sun peeked through the dangling trees. 

She’d have to remember to beat Floch’s ass more often.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hiatus=over! i appreciate you guys for waiting! if you couldnt tell, the fight scene was loosely based off of when charlie defended patrick in perks of being a wallflower. this fic isn’t meant to reflect it in any way, but i thought it would be an interesting scene, let me know what you think

**Author's Note:**

> Feedback is appreciated and updates will be daily/every other day!


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